At Sixes and Sevens
by kwiluvu
Summary: (And sometimes eights.) / / "Hey, Kiddo." / "Mm." / "I bet I can make you fall apart without even touching your junk." / "Is that supposed to be seductive?" / "Wh-?" / "Because it wasn't." / "It's a challenge, Kiddo." / "Hm. In that case, I don't accept." / "Why? Are you afraid I'm right?"/ / Angst/Romance/Suspense. Cover drawn by the ABSOLUTELY LOVELY Cinder42 on deviantART.
1. The Entire Contemptible Tale (Tears?)

Black Star didn't know how he'd gotten here.

No, that was a lie. He knew _exactly _how he'd gotten here. Another stupid bet. Another stupid bet _gone wrong._ The kicker was that it wasn't even a- a- a peculiar thing! Bets between him and Soul, him and Kid, went wrong all the time! Someone got physical, or someone got Maka Chopped, or someone got a bit embarrassed. This, though... This was different. He was _humiliated,_ disgusted even, that he had let the aftermath of some dumb bet drag on this long. It was sickening (or, as Soul would say, 'uncool'), the state he was in because of it. _He _had let it go on, _he _had instigated the whole thing, and now _he _had to pick up the pieces.

It wasn't behavior fit for surpassing the Gods, not that he worried about that stuff anymore.

_That stupid bet..._ He just wanted things to be normal again. Back to where he was pining from afar and Kid was oblivious and statuesque, with his dumb suits and cufflinks and that _one full stripe _of white in his hair that was a constant reminder to the assassin that _he _had played a part in bringing Kid closer to what he wanted- perfect symmetry- that _he _had saved Kid from that goddamn book, _he _had said he wanted to use his power to help Kid make his perfect world.

Now he knew, though. There was no 'perfect world'. There was only humiliation and heartache and _failure _with nothing to combat the stinging sensation of rejection, of defeat, of having your heart broken by a beautifully pale boy with golden eyes and an indifferent demeanor that only Black Star himself had been able to break.

A vision of that perfect boy moaning and writhing and _panting his name _as Black Star brought him to ecstasy flitted traitorously across his vision and his eyes snapped open, stinging for some reason. When he brought his hand up his fingers came back wet.

"Am I... Crying?" He whispered to himself incredulously. Clearly, he couldn't be left alone with his thoughts.

The sound of a door shutting made him look up.

"Black Star, I'm h-!" Tsubaki cut herself off as she saw her meister laying miserably on his side on the floor, wetness that was obviously tears staining his face. She dropped her shopping bags and fell to her knees beside him.

"Black Star, what's wrong?" She asked frantically, cupping his cheek in her hand, swiping away tears with a thumb. Black Star looked up at her pitifully, throwing himself into her lap as his shoulders shook.

"Tsubaki," he choked out. "... I fucked up..."

"Black Star," she said, rubbing his back in a comforting manner but speaking sternly. "You've been really weird and distant lately. I've never seen you this upset and I- I'm demanding answers!" She squeaked out the last part and Black Star squeezed her in response, lifting his head from where it was buried in her stomach.

"... It started with a bet," he began quietly, proceeding to tell her the whole sordid tale.


	2. The Beginning of the End (Rain)

Excitement and sadness hung in the air that early Winter morning. Bags were juggled and hefted so as not to touch the grimy, melting slush on the ground.

"-ck Star, remember to do your laundry! No one needs to see you na-!"

"THE MIGHTY BLACK STAR NEED NOT DO LAUNDRY!"

_"-u dare get in trouble, Soul, or I will Maka Chop your ass so hard..."_

_"Promise?" _

_"Maka CHOP!" _

**"-tty, Liz, make sure every inch of your living quarters is symmetrical-"**

**"Remember to eat, Kid."**

**"... Of course, Liz." **

The weapons of the school were loading into coach buses for a two month trip to train with the best scythes in the world. Their meisters were staying behind, helping to prepare for the other half of the training; the best, most notable meisters were coming to Shibusen to meet the budding young minds of the meister population.

Maka sniffled a little and Soul awkwardly patted her head. "Don't cry, Tiny Tits," he muttered uncomfortably. "We'll all be home before you know it. We're trusting you to watch after dumb and dumber over there." He jerked a thumb behind him where Kid and Black Star were arguing again. She smiled softly before throwing her arms around Soul's neck. He stiffened up for a moment then finally relaxed, hiding his smile in her hair as she nuzzled his chest.

"...I love you, Soul. You're my absolute best friend."

"You're," he choked out, clearing his throat and starting anew. "You're... My best friend too, Maka." She smiled up at him brightly.

* * *

><p>Black Star flung his arm around Kid's shoulder. "How's this, huh? Guy's night in! Video games! Junk food! Porn!" Black Star cackled while Kid raised an eyebrow and shrugged the other's arm away, adjusting his sleeves.<p>

"No."

"What?! Kid, come oooon!" Black Star whined. "Soul's gonna be gone! Who else am I gonna have guy's night with?!"

"It's a bad idea anyway. We'd have to exclude Maka, and she's going to freak out being in her house all by herself."

"Tch. We can all just go to your stupid mansion. Then, when Maka falls asleep, party time!" Kid pursed his lips.

"No."

"AGGGHHHHHHHH!" Black Star groaned, eliciting a response from his weapon.

"Black Star, what's wrong?" Kid cut in before Black Star answered.

"He's trying to convince me to sit around watching porn with him," Kid quipped. Black Star flushed, turning on the Shinigami.

"Shut up, two-stripe! That's not what I meant and you know it!" The assassin was practically ready to charge- nostrils flaring, eyes enraged, breathing in short spurts.

Kid had to admit he found it a little attractive. Attractive enough that he could let go of the two-stripe comment.

"Nn. That's what it sounded like to me, Black Star."

"Shut up, Kid!"

Dilated pupils, breath appearing in small clouds in the air, fists clenched. What Kid wouldn't do to-

"Maka Chop!"

"Ow!" Black Star yelped while Kid just rubbed his head irritably. What had he been thinking, again..?

Tsubaki's face was beet red, Patty was clapping her hands and giggling and Liz was staring at the sky.

"It's going to rain," Liz murmured, no one really hearing her.

"Just do the stupid guy's night," Soul advised Kid lowly. "He won't shut up until you do and he never puts porn on. Don't worry. It won't be that bad." Soul looked over at Maka laughing with Tsubaki. "Kid... Take care of her, okay?" He muttered, even quieter than before. "Tell Star, too. I'll hold you both personally responsible if she's even got a scratch on her," he teased lightly. Kid knew he was far from joking.

"... Of course, Soul," he said quietly in response. "But you have to look over the girls for me, as well."

"Done deal." With that they nodded at each other, Soul making his way to the buses while Kid headed toward the other two meisters. Kid held up a finger near the assassin's mouth before Black Star could say anything.

"I'll do your stupid guy's night," Kid growled. Black Star cheered and picked him up, nearly squeezing the life out of him. Maka raised an eyebrow at this, a small smile on her mouth as she waved to her friends on the buses.

"Guy's night, huh?" She asked. "You two have fun!" Black Star looped an arm through one of hers and Kid begrudgingly followed suit so that she'd be somewhat symmetrical.

"You're coming with us~!" Black Star sang. Maka sputtered angrily.

"Hey, I'm not a-!" Kid cut her off hastily.

"_What he means, _Maka, is that we'll all hang out for a little while, then once you're asleep we'll have this so-called... guy's night." Kid sighed out the last part in exasperation.

"I don't want you guys in my house tonight!" She whined. "It's too messy!"

"That's why we'll be at the manor!" Black Star cheered. "That way you don't have to sleep in a big lonely house all by yourself!" Maka blinked owlishly and Kid gave a small smirk, nodding.

"...It's true, I guess. We have to stick together, right? Hold down the fort for when the others get back..." Maka conceded quietly. With a cheer from Black Star and an approving nod from Kid the three set off for Gallows Manor.

That was when it started to downpour.


	3. Guy's Night (The Challenge)

"Wait, there's something I don't understand..." Tsubaki said hesitantly. The two had since moved to her bedroom with her back against the wall as she played with his hair, his head in her lap.

"I've barely even started!" Black Star whined, huffing. Tsubaki smiled down at him fondly.

"Just... I wanted to know how you... Knew about Maka and Soul's conversation, or what Kid was thinking. It's weird." He shrugged his shoulders, hugging a pillow to his chest.

"Nothing sinister, Tsubaki," he assured her. "They just told me." Tsubaki raised an eyebrow.

"Kid admitted to you that he thought you were attractive?" She murmured skeptically. Black Star nodded, face darkening with emotion.

"If you just listen to the story," Black Star grumbled, shifting onto his side, "then you'll know why."

* * *

><p>"What's wrong, Kid?" Liz demanded, busting into his room. Kid scowled.<p>

"Nothing's wrong," he muttered, bringing his eyes back to his book. Liz ripped it out of his hands as Patty peeked in. Kid's scowl deepened while Liz glared back at him, concern evident behind her rude expression.

"Kid, _you have Dean Martin blaring! _I'm not dumb! That's the whole reason I came in here!" Kid almost pouted. Couldn't he just keep it to himself? Why couldn't their shopping trip have been longer?

"Sit down, then," he hissed. "Both of you, because I won't tell this goddamn story twice."

...

Kid sighed as they burst through the door into the manor. What a mess to clean up. All that water just laying there dirty, grimy and gross_ all over his floor... _He let out a strangled noise of anguish.

"You two stay here. I'll get you some new clothes. Put everything in a pile, alright?" He said crisply, wincing at the squelch his shoes made every step he took. He grabbed a pair of Liz's flannel pajamas for Maka, a pair of loose shorts and a plain t-shirt for Black Star along with a few towels to clean up the mess with.

"Here," he said sharply. The two were back to back in only their undergarments and Kid was sure to keep his eyes on their faces. It wasn't awkward, not really, because of the way locker rooms at Shibusen were set up. It wasn't 'boys' and 'girls', it was 'weapons' and 'meisters'. They'd seen each other _naked _before but that didn't dismiss having a bit of modesty.

"There are bathrooms off of both the sisters' rooms; you can shower there if you want." He dropped to his knees and started mopping up the water, trying to ignore the feel of wet clothes on his skin. The others were looking at him strangely.

"Kid... Are you alright?" Maka asked, bending down to be face to face.

"... Fine," he responded coolly. "Just go get dressed."

As Black Star walked by, following Maka, he stopped and squeezed Kid's shoulder.

"They'll be back before you know it, Kiddo," he said softly, running his fingers through wet black hair. "So there's nothing to worry about. They'll be mad if you're gloomy the entire time they're gone, yeah?" A small smile showed on Kid's face.

"Just go shower, you sap," he muttered back, almost affectionate. When the assassin finally vacated the room Kid let out a small breath, gathering all the wet things and dumping them in the washer before sagging against it and wiping his hands down his face.

"Kid? You okay?" The shinigami swore, the back of his head slamming into the shelf above the washer painfully as he stared with wide eyes at the blue-haired assassin before him.

"Fine!" He squeaked out, backing up a couple of steps then practically running to his own room.

The only question he had was_ why the fuck Black Star was only wearing a towel. _The bathroom was literally connected to Liz's room! He didn't need to be in the goddamn hallway...

* * *

><p>An hour later, all weird experiences were put out of their heads. The three meisters were watching a tv show ("Maka, what is the point of watching a show about bitchy old housewives who need to get laid?" "Sh, Kid, I haven't watched Orange County in awhile!") and Maka's eyes were drooping.<p>

"Tired?" Black Star asked, sparing her a glance and ruffling her hair. She nodded, yawning, while Black Star scooped her up and looked at Kid.

"Last room on the left," Kid said lazily. He had relaxed after his shower, feeling clean of all grime and unsettling thoughts. "So that she doesn't get woken up by games and whatever." Following the recommendation Black Star carried her down the hallway as she muttered something in her sleep about Soul. A smile quirked on his mouth. He laid her down and tucked her in, brushing some hair out of her face.

"He'll be home soon," Black Star promised quietly. Over the past few years Maka had become like a little sister of sorts to him. He'd do anything to keep her safe; he'd do anything for any of his friends, really. Maka just needed a little more attention sometimes.

He plopped back onto the couch with a "Yahoo!" and Kid handed him a controller.

"Put in a game, will you? I can't be bothered." Black Star snorted and Kid allowed a small chuckle as Black Star got down on his knees and put in some racing game.

* * *

><p>"You're a real downer sometimes Kid, you know?" Black Star commented a few hours later as they played a fighting game. "I think you need to get laid." Kid sputtered and choked on his candy, allowing Black Star's character to beat Kid's as the shinigami glared at him.<p>

"I do _not,_" he responded nastily, immediately putting a mask of indifference up after and turning back to the game. Black Star snorted and did the same.

"Sometimes you remind me of those housewives on the dumb shows Maka watches all the time." At this Kid's teeth were clenched, his fingers nothing but a blur over the buttons as he beat the assassin's character to a pulp.

"... But then I remember you're a virgin." Black Star grinned cheekily as the last round began. Kid said nothing, just glared at the tv and the people on it.

"Hey, Kiddo."

"Mm."

"I bet I could make you fall apart without even touching your junk." Kid blinked, finger missing a button and giving Black Star an opening.

"... Is that supposed to be seductive?"

"Wh-?" Kid punched in a combination, putting a good dent in the other's health as he cut him off.

"Because it wasn't." Black Star chuckled darkly, unleashing a flurry of hits on the other.

"It's a_ challenge, _Kiddo," he taunted.

"Hm. In that case, I _don't _accept," he snarled back just as Black Star gained the upper hand. After about thirty seconds of tense silence Black Star (having just won the level) turned to Kid, smirking with a raised eyebrow.

"Why?" He asked lowly. The tone of the assassin's voice gave Kid a visible shiver as he stared ahead at the wall; eyes wide, face pink, breath just barely irregular.

"Are you afraid I'm right?" Kid stood abruptly, controller clattering to the floor as he fled the room. He slammed his bedroom door shut and locked it, leaning against said door and looking down at his pajama bottoms- more accurately, the tent rising slowly in them.

"... Fuck."


	4. You Look Good Like This (Nicest Thing)

"Maka..." Soul said slowly from where he was sprawled on the couch. It was a few hours after the girls' shopping trip. "Do you know what's been going on with Kid and Black Star?" She let out a moody little grunt, bookmarking her page and holding it to her chest as she curled up in the chair.

"I... Don't know exactly what's going on," she replied hesitantly, sounding almost guilty. "But I do have a pretty good idea..."

"Is it anything I'm gonna wanna know?"

"Ahm... Probably? I don't really know," she confessed quietly.

"Maka... I know it's really uncool of me to pry into other people's lives, but... Well, they both seem... I don't know, distant from all of us. It'd be uncool not to help our friends. So can you just... Tell me what's wrong with each of them?" Maka snorted softly, smiling.

"There's nothing wrong with them, Soul... In fact, I'm fairly sure things are more than good with them right now." Soul's brows furrowed a bit but his face stayed otherwise passive as his meister began her telling of the story.

...

For about a week after guy's night, Maka noticed some... Changes in Kid and Black Star. Black Star was just a _little_ bit more smug in regards to the shinigami, and Kid was just a _tad bit _colder toward the assassin. It wasn't anything obvious by any means; the only other people with the best chance of noticing were away. _How convenient, _she thought dryly, actually considering the fleeting idea of asking the other meisters of Spartoi if they had noticed. They spent enough time with the two, yeah?

A perfect example of said behavior would be about three days after the weapons had left. The students were decorating for the meisters that would be coming in four days' time.

"Hey, Kiddo!" Black Star called arrogantly from his high perch on a ladder. He was setting up little paper mache models of souls, done by the Shibusen primary school. "I bet you couldn't make one of these without it _falling apart_!" Maka blinked from her place across the room. That wasn't a usual Black Star thing... Not something so random as that.

"In fact," Black Star continued tauntingly, "I _challenge_ you, two-stripe!" The assassin's laughter was cut off by his sudden yelp and a loud clattering combined with a thump: the sound of a ladder and a body hitting the floor.

Maka gasped, shooting up to go and help Black Star but instead staying in place with wide eyes. He had landed on his face and knees with his ass in the air. Kid had hooked a leg around the ladder and tugged; now he was walking calmly towards the blue-haired male with his hands in his pockets. His shoes were the only sound in the silent room. He stared down at the prone form, cold malice in his eyes as he took a foot and ground Black Star's face further into the floor. Not moving his foot as he bent down, he spoke quietly to other with a sneer. Then he stood up, kicking Black Star away from him as he proceeded to walk out.

His hands didn't leave his pockets.

...

"Wow..." Soul muttered. "That's rough." Maka nodded, then yawned.

"I've got to go take a nap... I'll tell you more later, okay?" Soul nodded, staring up at the ceiling lazily as Maka's door shut quietly. It seemed like his friends were in pretty deep shit and he still wasn't even sure what was going on.

* * *

><p>"It was awful, Tsubaki," he whined pitifully. Her face was still red.<p>

"Y- You actually said those things, Black Star?" She squeaked. He nodded miserably.

"And... That stuff he said when you were down... He actually said that?!"

"Just listen, okay? I promise it'll make sense..."

...

Black Star let out an enraged yell that day after school, hitting a punching bag so hard it flew into the wall, sagging against the floor.

_ You look good like this, Black Star; even after I figured out you were gay, I still never took you for a bottom._

"Fuck you!" He raged, setting the bag back up and pummeling it. He wasn't gay! He wasn't attracted to guys, he was barely even attracted to girls anymore, he just..! He was really just attracted to Kid, at this point. At the moment, it was pissing him off.

"I can't believe that guy," he grumbled, taking the school training gloves off and throwing them to the floor. He walked out of Shibusen, still seething, but faltered. Kid had said something else after, almost hesitantly...

_And... If you were really serious about what you said the other night... Then come to the manor tonight and prove it._

Black Star swallowed and turned. It wasn't in the direction of his apartment.

...

"K-Kid..." Liz stammered out. "Y-You and Black Star..?" Kid looked away from her, face contorting to something pitiful. The song changed to 'Return To Me'; Kid scowled, taking an arm and violently sweeping the entire sound system on to the floor. Liz gave a scream while Patty watched, eyes dark. Kid's shoulders heaved and once the pounding in her ears receded Liz could hear little gasps-_ Kid was **crying** and it was the most heartbreaking sound in the world-_ then Liz was holding him and he was clutching onto her and the only thing Patty could hear were Kid's sobs and the words he choked out around them-

_"Li- iz I, I don't-t wa-n t t to f-feel like t-th-hiss-"_

Liz continued holding him and after awhile Patty kneeled on the floor, taking his face in her hands.

"It'll be okay Kid- AH-AH-AH!" She scolded as he opened his mouth to argue. "It _will _be okay, as long as you keep telling us what happened. We'll find a way to fix this." She smiled lightly as Liz brushed some hair out of his face. "So don't worry, okay?"

...

Kid sat on the couch, finger tapping slowly on his knee as he thought about terrifying things. What if it all had been a joke? What if Black Star just wanted to have a laugh, humiliate him? Had Kid taken too big of a risk earlier? Had someone else heard? He hadn't specified a time; was that a problem?

Basically, Kid was thinking the same things that were running through the assassin's head as he rang the doorbell.

Kid scrambled up, waiting exactly eight seconds to compose himself before opening the door. Both felt a crushing sense of relief at seeing the other behind the wood. Black Star stepped in and the two didn't say something for a minute or so, until...

"So... How's your face?" Kid asked in a clipped tone. Black Star grinned, reaching out to ruffle Kid's hair. The latter ducked out of the way, scowling, and they lapsed into a more comfortable silence. Kid swallowed loudly, then wordlessly walked toward his room. He heard Black Star's padding feet behind him and he opened his door. It shut behind Black Star with a small click, the lock making a similar noise. Kid's heart was pounding in his chest and he could_ feel_ the assassin's body heat _right behind him and-_

"I'm gonna make you come, Kiddo," the bluenette practically growled. Kid let out an involuntary moan, flushing red right after; Black Star chuckled softly while licking the shell of his ear, then hesitated slightly.

"... You do wanna do this, yeah?" He asked softly, breath puffing on the other's neck. His hands were loosely positioned at the shinigami's hips, thumbs rubbing in small circles. "If not, I'll let it go, won't ever mention anything about it- I was mostly just trying to get a rise out of you-" Kid cut off his babbling with a finger, though he didn't know why; this was his way out, his get-out-of-jail-free card, his pride wasn't in danger anymore, but he... Didn't want it? Wanted to let whatever was going to happen, happen? Something of the sort.

"Stop talking, would you?" Kid asked softly. "You said... You said you could... Make me fall apart, as it were, right? Without even touching me there? This is my challenge to you, Black Star: prove it." Kid waited with bated breath to see how his words would be taken.

* * *

><p>"... Don't mind if I do," the teen in question whispered huskily, moving his mouth down to kiss the pale skin of the shorter teen's neck. Kid shivered pleasantly, crying out quietly as the assassin bit down and teased the flesh between his teeth. Snaking his hands around to the buttons on Kid's blazer he started to undo them, continuing to work the shinigami's neck as he let the offendingly bulky item drop to the floor. With a loud 'pop' he pulled back from Kid's neck, smirking at the mark there, branding Kid as his.<p>

In hindsight, that thought should have sent Black Star running from the whole thing.

"Bed," the bluenette muttered, nudging the shinigami (who obliged). Kid fell on his back, face flushed as he looked up at Black Star. The look he was sporting had Black Star wanting to devour him: pink cheeks, dark eyes, dilated pupils, chest rising and falling rapidly. Black Star bit back a smile as he turned his heavy gaze to the impressive bulge in Kid's pants. He smoothed hands up and down the other's clothed thighs, hands trembling just a touch.

"You're excited," he mused quietly, making slow work on the buttons separating him from the pale expanse of the other's torso. Kid let out a 'hmm' in response, eyes closed. As soon as the buttons were gone Black Star spread the shirt open. Calloused hands ran gently over soft skin, fingers skated lightly up and down sides. Black Star hummed, tweaking a nipple experimentally and was met with a short moan out of Kid's mouth. Biting his top lip to keep a smirk held back, he leaned down and flicked his tongue at one; he was rewarded once again by a noise of pleasure from his virginal friend.

Black Star pulled back, his action followed by a noise of frustration until-

Kid let his head fall back down on the pillows in approval as his slacks and boxers were pulled down in one fell swoop. He flushed under the bluenette's gaze, moving to cross his legs, but nope, Black Star would be having _none of that thank you very much, _and so he spread those legs apart defiantly. Kid squirmed, letting out a whine; his cock twitched at the thought that someone was staring right at him there, wanted to, even. Black Star shushed him by pulling the shinigami into his lap so the other was straddling him; the Death God buried his face in the assassin's neck as fingers resumed their roaming and all the blue-haired meister could think was _is this actually happening?_

Hands smoothed up the backs of thighs and over buttocks as the other male made soft, happy noises and_ that _was when Black Star started crooning in his companion's ear.

"So pretty." As he ran hands down his clothed back.

"Very fuckable." As he squeezed the other's backside.

"I could eat you up." As he lavished the shinigami's neck.

"You look so good like this." As Black Star flipped Kid on his back, holding his wrists above his head and nudging apart the shorter's legs with his knees, leaning down so their lips were centimeters apart and gazes locked.

"Say my name..." Right as Kid came over the both of them with a loud cry.

"S- Star..!" the Death God whimpered out quietly, sagging into the mattress. Black Star wasn't surprised; Kid was a virgin, there was no way he had enough restraint to withstand someone else touching him for a prolonged period of time. He hummed contentedly, his own member painfully hard, but he'd deal with it later. They laid there for a few minutes, the shorter still spread for him, until Kid looked up at him droopily.

"I... Need to shower," he murmured.

"And I need a new shirt," Black Star replied, grinning lightly. Kid blushed, looking away and moving to get up. He grabbed a towel and hurried into his en suite bathroom. If Black Star watched his ass as he went, wearing nothing but a rumpled and unbuttoned white dress shirt... And said assassin thought it was _cute_, well...

No one else had to know, right?


	5. Miscommunication (Dumb Boys)

Soul started awake, blinking on the couch where he had been dozing off as Maka's bedroom door opened and hit the wall with a dull 'bang'. She came out sleepily, rubbing her eyes and plopping down next to him with her head on his shoulder.

"Right, so, the day after the ladder incident, everything was kinda the opposite," she began, voice clogged with sleep.

...

And so it was. Now, Black Star was just a _tad bit_ less smug toward the shorter meister and Kid was just a _ little _ less cold in regards to the bluenette. Maka was bewildered but she didn't ask about it or mention it; honestly, she wasn't quite sure she wanted to know. She watched them, though, very closely in the days leading up to the first day of training. It seemed that with this newfound friendliness, there was more casual touching going on. She filed it away as weird, but not really scandalous. A pat on the shoulder as they passed one another, a tan finger curling around a strand of black hair absent mindedly as they sat side by side, a light touch on the arm here, a casually flung arm around the shoulders there...

It was the second day of said behavior that Maka took out that file in her head labelled 'weird', instead labelling it 'flirting'. That's exactly what it was, according to those dumb romance novels Blair had gotten her hooked on. She didn't know the catalyst for such a seemingly small but potentially drastic change between the two; though, she _was_ pretty sure it had something to do with the fact that when she had gone to Black Star's apartment the night he fell off the ladder, the resident assassin was nowhere to be found.

...

"The week or so after was pretty cool; we were getting along better, y'know? Plus, there was the beginning of training, and that was downright awesome..." Black Star made a face. "Except that they kept singling out the members of Spartoi, letting us off the hook for doing some things, because we're so 'advanced'. It kinda sucked ass." Tsubaki made a similar face, nodding sympathetically.

"Yeah. They did the same to us."

...

"Today, we'll be working on soul resonance; members of Spartoi, feel free to sit out as you've already been trained in this." The one speaking was a middle-aged man with graying hair and baggy clothes that only helped in making him look homeless. He was supposedly one of the world's most renowned meisters, but so far all he had done was disappoint. _Tch. Kyle Krumb, indeed,_ Black Star thought darkly.

"No, thank you," Maka said icily and she spoke for everyone in said group. They had even had a meeting about it. "None of us, including Spartoi members, _especially_ Spartoi members, appreciate all of you singling us out. So what if we know it? Practice makes perfect." All attention was on Maka, giving Black Star (at the back of the room) the opportunity to trail his fingers across the back of Kid's neck. The shinigami shivered, Black Star noticing the tips of his ears darkening.

"Miss Albarn, I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk to a fellow meister, particularly an _elder, _in such a manner," Kyle Krumb retorted, eyes blazing while Maka's stayed cold. He was fire, she was ice. The two didn't mix.

"Well_ I'd _appreciate it if you'd stop treating me like I'm a full grown meister! I still have a lot left to learn! We _all_ do!" And it went on.

"Hey, Kiddo..." The assassin whispered against his neck. Kid closed his eyes as he let out a small puff of air, ears still red from before. Black Star wanted to take one of those ears between his teeth and_ tug... _So he did. Kid's face heated up; Black Star's hands went around to the shinigami's front, fiddling with his zipper.

"Black Star," he hissed out, hands resting atop the other's but not making a move to stop them. "Can you maybe _not _molest me in class?" Kid swallowed noisily as he began to harden. Black Star grinned, flipping his hands so his fingers could lace with Kid's and pressing his mouth to that pale, pale neck.

"Well," he said slowly, huskily as his thumbs caressed the other's, "I guess it's a good thing I was going to ask if you wanted to find an empty room with me." Kid only flushed brighter before nodding quickly; if the assassin had blinked, he would have missed it. As it was, he grinned and placed a small, open-mouthed kiss behind the shorter male's ear. He kept one hand laced tightly with Kid's own as he stealthily made his way further back in the classroom, Maka and Krumb's argument holding everyone's attention.

* * *

><p>Black Star was... Ecstatic. That incident between them had occurred four days ago. He was definitely ready for another, even if it meant he had to wait to get off until he was home. He liked seeing Kid get hot- <em>for him. <em> He liked hearing Kid moan and whine-_ for him._ He especially liked it when Kid came- for _him._ Him, Black Star. Him and no one else. _He _got to see Kid fall apart. _He _got to bring Kid to ecstasy. Him.

Black Star was hard at just the thought.

"Let's... Do something different than last time," Kid muttered as Black Star led him into an empty classroom.

"What'd you have in mind, Kiddo?" The bluenette inquired as he locked the door, turning to see Kid already in just his boxers. His clothes were folded in a neat pile beside him. Black Star quirked an eyebrow.

"Someone's eager," he murmured, taking a step toward the other male. As he wet his dry lips his eyes roamed over the less-than-clothed form of _perfection _in front of him. Last time he'd been too nervous/excited/overwhelmed to think or appreciate much; he'd been overloaded, pingponging between "Is this really happening?" and "KidKidKidKidKid". He wouldn't make the same mistake now.

Black hair with three white stripes, only one complete; full, wet lips (red from Kid's teeth gnashing on them); golden eyes that were, at the moment, darkened with lust; flushed cheeks with just the barest sign of _freckles. _Pale, slender column of a throat, fading love-marks dotting it; slight shoulders, pert pink nipples, smooth torso with telling signs of muscles and effeminate hips; toned arms with calves to match; creamy white thighs (hairless, he added appreciatively) leading up to the very obvious problem in his boxers.

"Fuck..." Black Star breathed, taking a small step forward. He wasn't sure what fluke of nature had led to this but he wasn't going to complain.

"Ah." Kid denied him, holding out a finger. Black Star actually _pouted_, looking for all intents and purposes like a scolded child. Kid was still flushing but he had a miniscule smirk on his face. He stepped forward, bringing his fingers to the hem of the other male's shirt, giving it a small tug upwards. Black Star got the idea, moving to grab his shirt and pull it off, but Kid slapped his hands away with a small scowl.

"Put your hands over your head. _I'm _going to do it." Black Star felt his cock twitch at the small show of dominance, humoring the other and lifting his arms with a low chuckle. Kid pulled the shirt off, reaching on his tiptoes, then proceeded to fold the shirt and put it in the pile with his own. Next he bent down, slipping the other's shoes and socks off; into the pile they went. Black Star swallowed almost nervously as Kid stood up again, walking over to him. The shinigami hesitantly reached out, undoing the button on his friend's shorts and slowly unzipping them. This caused them to fall unceremoniously to the floor and before Kid could pick them up the assassin did, folding them neatly and holding them out almost as an offering. Kid smiled, taking them and placing them in the pile gently.

He turned back around and looked Black Star in much the same manner the latter had earlier. The bluenette squirmed under his gaze, aware that he was sporting a tent caused by his aching member. Kid stepped forward quickly, latching his mouth onto Black Star's neck as the assassin slung his arms around the other's hips, panting out soft, even breaths. They stayed that way for a few minutes, Kid awkwardly trying to figure out how to do 'that necking thing' he had read about, Black Star only being turned on more by his cute fumbling. Kid finally let out a frustrated huff (Black Star chuckled) and chewed on his bottom lip while looking up at the other with half lidded eyes. He reached out, tugging the bluenette's boxers experimentally before sliding them slowly down his legs. He didn't even care that they crumpled up on the floor.

* * *

><p>"Black Star," Kid uttered, "sit down somewhere, would you?" He wet his lips. It wasn't that Black Star had some monstrous cock (because really it was only about a half inch bigger than his if looking were anything to go by), it was just that he really... Really wanted to touch it. Which was crazy, because c'mon, it's just a dick. Regardless, he shed himself of his boxers and walked to where the other was waiting.<p>

* * *

><p>Black Star had seated himself on one of the curved desks; the room was set up much the same as Stein's just on a smaller scale. Kid soon joined him, clambering onto the assassin's knees and scooting forward to his thighs, just sitting there a moment.<p>

"Kiddo, what're you do-?" He cut off with a small moan and a barely uttered 'fuck', forehead pressing into the other boy's shoulder. Kid was slowly, _oh so fucking slowly_, grinding his erection into the bluenette's own; small mewls and low moans could be heard echoing throughout the room. Black Star's fingers were dug into the other's hips so hard they would bruise later, because fuck... Kid. KidKidKidKidKid. The shinigami let out another small noise, loosely wrapping a tentative hand around their cocks as he sped up his hips fractionally. He let out a soft cry as Black Star's teeth dug into his shoulder.

"Fuck... _Kid..._" he whimpered out the other's name as one of his hands wrapped around Kid's (the other still stationary on his left hip), finding a rhythm and circling his hips to it. Their erections were slipping and sliding against each other from the precum they had released.

"I can't-" Kid let out a strangled moan, dropping his head to Black Star's shoulder as he nearly sobbed with the power of his release. The faintest whisper of "Star" was uttered, but it was _there _and with that the bluenette came, muffling his cries by kissing and sucking on Kid's neck as he whispered expletives. For about ten minutes they just sat there, holding each other as they used one another to support their spent selves and their come caked onto their skin. Looking back, this was the second time Black Star should have noticed that this was going to a place he didn't want it to.

"Well, fuck," Kid finally said, nipping Black Star's neck. "It's never that good when I do it myself." Black Star raised an eyebrow humorously, looking mock-scandalized.

"My, _my,_ Kiddo. Did you just make a joke?" Kid smiled and half-heartedly punched his shoulder while Black Star buried his nose in the shorter's neck, chuckling.

...

"And that's how I knew for sure I was in love with Kid."

* * *

><p>"And that's how Star and I became Friends With Benefits."<p> 


	6. Cream (Not-So-Secret Secret)

"Guys, I'm telling you! I know what I saw!" Hiro said in frustration, stomping his foot childishly. He had happened upon the other seven members of Spartoi in the food court at the mall.

"There's no way, Hiro," Ox snapped back. "Not those two. Kid pushed Black Star off a ladder, for fuck's sake."

"And I'm telling you that four days _after_ that, Black Star and Kid snuck off while Maka chewed out Krumb. Black Star was all over him, then Kid nodded and the two left!" Kilik shrugged.

"I don't really see why it matters."

"Come to think of it..." Kim started slowly, prompting everyone to look at her with rapt attention. "After that session, Maka _did_ come up and ask if I'd seen them..."

"And," Jackie continued, "they... touch each other a lot more. Black Star is constantly paying with Kid's hair during class; I don't think he even realises it. And Kid nudges Black Star a lot, to show him something or even just to give him a smile..." She looked deep in thought. "So it's possible, even if marginally so."

"Hah! Even Jackie and Kim agree!" He cried, practically preening. Kim rolled her eyes.

"If you can give us actual _proof _that they're dating, we'll believe you," Ox conceded. Hiro walked off confidently, determined to prove he was right, for once.

* * *

><p>"After that," Black Star murmured quietly, hands clenched around his mug, "it was really hard to stay off each other. We had to spend time with Maka, too, since we promised we'd look after her. We would have anyway, but still." They had moved to the kitchen and Tsubaki had made them each mugs of tea. The partners sat across from each other, Black Star looking at the table to find posters in the wood. He hadn't been sharing the explicit details of Kid and his sexual encounters, just the bare minimum. Tsubaki couldn't hand the specifics (even though she was most perverted out of them all) and Black Star knew that.<p>

"So, we compensated."

...

Compensate they did. They'd be watching a movie with Maka and Kid's feet would be in his lap. They'd be sitting in class and Black Star would have a hand on Kid's knee. Of course, nearly every night for the past two weeks they had been getting each other off. They never kissed. They didn't have sex. It was keeping them both fairly relaxed, something Maka took note of.

One particular night they were watching more of Maka's reality tv ("Teen Mom? Maka, honestly, what's with the shit you watch?" "Yeah, Maka. Clog up your_ own _DVR with this crap, not mine.") when she suddenly shot up from her seat.

"Shit! I'm supposed to call Soul! Kid, give me your phone!" Maka cried. Kid just nodded to the kitchen.

"Landline." As soon as she was out of the room the two meisters practically pounced on one another- Black Star ravishing Kid's neck, Kid grinding their crotches together desperately, both determined to get something out of this before the girl came back. Black Star let out a grunt, nipping up the shinigami's neck and jaw line.

"Been too long," he grumbled, situating Kid on his lap and moving their hips together roughly as he sucked on the bottom right of Kid's chin's underside.

"Only been... Three days," Kid panted, throwing his head back and biting his lip hard enough to draw blood as Black Star gave a sharp thrust upwards.

"Too... Damn... Long," he hissed back, each word reinforced with another hard grind. Kid moaned quietly, mouth covered by his hand.

"Star," he muttered, resting his forehead on the assassin's shoulder and gyrating faster into the other. He whimpered in Black Star's ear. "I th- think I'm going to-" Three things happened after that; Black Star gave another rough roll of his hips, Kid let out a strangled yell/moan that Black Star effectively quieted by bringing the shinigami's mouth towards his neck which the shorter nipped at viciously, and Kid _creamed his pants._ Black Star realized that these thoughts were bad, that he had made that happen because next thing he knew he was letting out a gasping moan and clutching Kid tightly, forehead pressing into sweaty black hair. After a minute, Black Star spoke raggedly.

"Kiddo..." He pressed kisses all over the top of his head. "You made me cream my pants." Kid chuckled, hands running through sweaty, soft, blue hair.

"Just returning the favor," Kid mused, which made Black Star guffaw loudly.

"You're dumb sometimes y'know, Kiddo."

"Trust me, I'm fully aware," he murmured. They heard a chirp of "Bye, Soul!" and scrambled to untangle themselves from each other. They sat through the night, the substance in their pants growing cold and uncomfortable.

After Maka left, the two boys went to Kid's room and got each other off again. Black Star ended up just sleeping in Kid's room, the two naked and tangled together.

"Night, Black Star," Kid muttered.

"Night, Kiddo." A small smile graced his face, but he wasn't about to let Black Star know.

* * *

><p>Black Star woke up with Kid in his arms and it was pretty much the best fucking morning he'd ever had. He stared at the meister, who's head was tucked under Black Star's chin as he breathed softly in his sleep. Kid's hands were curled on the bluenette's chest; Black Star hand one arm under Kid's head and the other was thrown loosely around the other teen's waist. He smiled fondly down at the shorter, pressing a small kiss to his temple. That was the third time Black Star should've realized he needed to stop... Whatever this was, because it was certainly not the kind of thing he should be doing with someone he was in love with.<p>

He didn't.


	7. That Super-Cliche'd Chapter (Cock-Block)

"The morning of the last day of the second week this... Thing had been between us, I woke up in Black Star's arms. It was kind of a little... Exhilarating," Kid admitted quietly, regretfully, voice thick from his earlier bout of sobbing. Liz, Patty and himself were all laying on his bed, him sandwiched between the two in what he supposed was meant to be a show of comfort. Grudgingly, he admitted to himself it wasn't anywhere near the same as when... Tch. He cleared his throat. Right. That was behind him, now. No more thoughts like that of the blue haired, obnoxious, protective, gorgeous-

Goddammit.

...

Kid awoke groggily, nuzzling closer to the warmth cocooning around him.

"Kiddo," a smooth voice rumbled as a finger trailed across his back, tracing patterns that made Kid shiver. He blinked open his eyes sleepily to see Black Star looking down on him with a raised eyebrow and a lazy grin. Kid grumbled something unintelligible even to himself and just pulled the other closer. He wasn't sure why; in his sleep-addled mind it just felt... Right. Very, very right.

"Kiddo," Black Star murmured again, nipping the pale ear of the smaller meister. "We need to shower, or something. We didn't really... _Clean up_ last night." Now that the bluenette mentioned it, Kid took notice of the unpleasant itchy feeling on his torso and in other places where their come had flaked off of them and onto the sheets.

"Ngh," was the only response Kid gave to that sentiment. They stayed there a few more minutes; the shinigami shifted and something brushed against his thigh. Something hard and warm... Peeking under the blankets Kid raised an eyebrow at Black Star, who only shrugged sheepishly.

"Morning wood," he said by way of explanation. This prompted Kid to finally get out of bed, clambering over the person that could now be considered his lover, of sorts.

"Shower," he grumbled, staggering toward the bathroom. When the other meister just continued to lay in bed the Death God squinted at him.

"What are you doing?" He sounded irritated. Black Star looked at him in confusion, taking a moment to admire the marks all along his jaw, neck and torso.

"Uh..?"

"_Shower,"_ Kid grumbled, jerking his thumb behind him to the open doorway. Black Star's eyes widened marginally.

"Oh, you meant-?" He sat there for another moment before seemingly coming to his senses and scrambling to get out of bed, getting tangled in the sheets and falling to the floor with a thump. Kid hid his smile with his hand, rolling his eyes and stepping into the bathroom. Black Star joined him moments afterward, leaning forward and brushing his lips across the back of the other teen's neck, leaving Kid trembling faintly. The shinigami stepped further into the large bathroom, turning the knob on the shower. It hissed to life, the bathroom slowly filling with steam. It was one of those stalls meant for only taking showers; there was a modern Jacuzzi tub as well, but it had no showerhead.

Kid stepped into the stall after a minute, tugging Black Star with him and shutting the glass door. They were chest to chest in the small space; Kid's back was against the wall opposite the door, the water spray hitting the sides of the two meisters.

"Hey, Kiddo," Black Star said cheekily, smiling easily down at him. Kid flushed up his neck; they hadn't ever really been in eye contact while naked.

"... Hi," he whispered back. They were quiet for a few minutes, just staring at one another. The air was thick with... Something. Then Kid was slowly leaning up on his tiptoes, arms wrapping around Black Star's neck as the bluenette's own circled his waist, the assassin's eyes wide and Kid's fluttering shut with their mouths only inches apart, breath mingling together-

"Yo~! Kiddo, you in there?" Kid jumped violently, head smacking against the wall as he stared wide-eyed at the other meister.

"Yes, father," Kid said, sounding remarkably composed as he kept eye contact with Black Star. "I'm in the shower. What do you need?" Black Star reached out and pulled Kid's head closer to him so he could kiss the bumped spot before gently massaging the surrounding area. Kid flushed brightly but didn't try to stop him.

"Oh~! Just wanted to remind you I won't be home for a few days~! I've got business around the city!" Lord Death paused for a moment before letting out a laugh. "Make sure you get Black Star's shorts off of the ceiling fan~! He'll probably need them!" Kid slumped his head forward on the bluenette's chest with a groan of frustration, face now a deep red. Black Star simply laughed, tilting Kid's chin up so he could get a better view of that adorably scarlet face. "Make sure you two are using protection!" He finished cheerfully.

"I _told_ you that you'd regret throwing them." The night before, Kid had been having a hard time with aforementioned shorts to the point that when he had gotten them off he'd flung them away in his frustration.

"Don't even start with me," Kid grumbled, reaching for the shampoo.

"Ah-Ah-Ah!" Black Star teased, plucking the bottle from his grasp and putting it back on the shower caddy. "Kiddo, tsk tsk. Did you _really_ think that we'd be in the shower together, all wet and hot and naked, and do nothing?" Black Star chuckled, lifting Kid up against the shower wall and pinning their hips together. They both moaned at the contact, Kid's legs wrapping around the other's waist reflexively and fingernails digging into his shoulders while Black Star slowly started rutting into him. Kid whined, back sliding against the wet shower wall.

"Shh," the bluenette cooed against that love-marked neck. "Wouldn't want Lord Death to hear, would we?"

"Then-" Kid let out a strangled moan. The hot water was wonderful. "You- G- Get over here!" Kid demanded, pulling Black Star up by the hair and crushing their lips together. It was their first kiss; not just together, but at _all._ Black Star was frozen for a minute but then let his eyes close and returned the kiss with equal fervor, hips grinding more frantically against the other's. It was their first kiss. It was a passionate kiss. It was a hungry kiss. It was a kiss that didn't end even after they had come, even after Black Star's trembling legs gave out and they slid to the floor of the shower, even after the water ran cold.

It was the kiss that should have been the first sign Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

* * *

><p>It was the kiss that should have been the fourth warning to Black Star that this needed to end.<p> 


	8. Maka's Little Lie (Dry Humping)

Maka chewed her lip in thought, debating the consequences of her next actions. She was laying on her bed whilst staring at the ceiling; Garth sat on her lap, resting his head against her stomach.

"What should I do, Garth?" She whispered. He only blinked at her in response. The blonde sighed heavily, walking across the hall to knock on the door to Soul's room lightly.

"Soul?" She got only a soft snore in response, prompting her to open the door delicately and tiptoe over to him, Garth trailing after her. Soul laid shirtless on his side, facing the wall and curved in on himself slightly. She sat down on the edge of his bed, brushing some hair out of his face and (unwittingly) waking him up.

"Maka..?" He grumbled, swatting at her lethargically with a (very 'cool') pout on his lips. She chuckled, catching his hand in her's and playing with his fingers nervously. Garth clambered up next to Soul's head and Soul looked at him in distaste.

"Maka?" He asked, more awake this time. She sighed, looking down at their hands; their fingers had somehow laced together without her noticing.

* * *

><p>"I... I lied earlier when I said I didn't know what was going on," Maka confessed. "I thought you'd be mad at me for keeping it from you this long, but I realized you're my partner and we tell each other everything, right?" Soul nodded slowly, watching as she turned away and looked down at their hands again.<p>

"... Kid and Black Star have been sleeping together." Soul blinked at that. There was a small part inside of him freaking out, another one equally miniscule that was irritated at being left out of the loop. The largest part, though, was just relieved to know it wasn't anything sinister going on with the two.

"Oh. Well... Good for them, I guess?"

They sat there in silence until Soul ventured, "So... How do you know this, again?" His meister sighed (she should stop that, he decided) and began her story.

"Well... Black Star, Kid and I were watching Teen Mom-"

"Seriously? Why do you even watch that shit?"

"-shut _up,_ Soul!-"

"Well, I'm just saying-"

"MAKA CHOP!"

"... Alright, go on." Maka huffed, letting go of Soul's hand and crossing her arms. Soul just raised an eyebrow, hooking an arm around her waist and depositing her in the large space between himself and the wall as she squeaked, Garth immediately curling up between the partners and half in Maka's lap.

"Alright, alright," she laughed. "I'll tell you, but stop knocking my shows!" His meister cleared her throat, giving him a pointed look. He smirked back, letting her talk.

"So, the night I called you late?"

"Mhm."

"And I said there were weird noises coming from the living room?"

"Mhm."

"So I went to check them, to make sure Star and Kid weren't trying to kill each other..."

"M_hm_."

"... They were pretty much dry humping on the couch; actually, I'm pretty sure they _were _dry humping on the couch. I think that's what constitutes as dry humping." Soul was laughing, just laughing and laughing. After awhile he looked at her face, giving a small, easy grin as he flicked her nose.

"Maka, there's a difference between 'dry humping' and 'having sex'," Soul said casually. "In fact, I could give you a demonstration if you want?" He was only teasing, but her face flared right up. He laughed again as she punched him, hard. "Hey! Ow, what was-!"

"You're such a pervert, Soul!" She shrieked, hitting him repeatedly with a book as he called for mercy. "And I wasn't finished!" He finally caught her wrist and the two stared at each other for a loaded moment- a moment that was ruined by Maka clearing her throat and looking away.

"Right, so, the day after that I got a summons from Lord Death, which was weird because it was a Saturday, y'know?" Soul watched as his meister rambled on, acting like nothing significant had happened, but he knew it had. He wasn't sure if it was good significant or bad significant, but he knew it was... _ significant._

He felt kind of uncool at not being able to come up with a better word, one with more meaning, more... Significance.

Fuck. So uncool.

...

"Lord Death?" Maka said, stepping through the door into the Death Room. She walked through the guillotine gates to the platform, which was empty. "You wanted to see me-?"

"Heyyo, Maka~!" The meister let out a small squeal; he had popped out from practically nowhere.

"I need to ask you a favor, okay okay?" He clapped his large hands together.

"I-"

"Great~! I really need you to keep a close eye on Kiddo and Black Star for me, can you do that Maka? Oh, and report back! Great! Thanks, you can go now!"

"Lord Death, what do you mean by-?" Maka stumbled into the hallway of Shibusen. He had been in a real rush for her to leave- did he know something about Kid and Black Star's weird couch incident..? Steeling her resolve, she turned around and walked back in.

"Lord Death! I'll do what you ask of me, because I'm curious too, but you have to explain why you want me to do this!" He stood in the middle of the platform, hands folded behind his back as he sighed, turning around to face her. The sky was blue and the clouds were flowing just as always, but the mood in the room was dark somehow.

"Maka, this has to stay super-top-secret information," he said seriously. She nodded, anticipation thrumming through her. Then he leaned forward, putting a hand next to his mouth and whispering, "I think Kiddo and Black Star like each other!" Her shoulders slumped. He really_ didn't _know anything about what she had witnessed on the couch.

"For example!" He continued, sounding as if he were a drill sergeant. "This morning I went to tell Kiddo I wouldn't be home for a few days, and his room was a mess! His and Black Star's clothes were everywhere! There were shorts hanging off the ceiling fan! And they were in the shower together! There was," he took a breath, then said lowly, "_ejaculate _all through the sheets!" Maka stared at him, eyes wide and face flushed pink in embarrassment for her friends.

"They're- sleeping together?" She asked. "Black Star and Kid?" He nodded and she gave him a skeptical look. "You're _sure_ it's them? Not Kid and someone else..?" Yes, she had known they were flirting, but... Wasn't having sex a bit too far of a stretch for those two? They were barely friends on the best of days. Lord Death nodded exaggeratedly.

"Oh, yes! Absolutely, 100% Kiddo and Black Star!"

"I've got to admit, I'm a little skeptical... But if you say so, then I'll try and keep an eye on them for you." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "If it helps, they've seemed a lot friendlier, lately... Flirting, I guess." Lord Death nodded again.

"Thank you thank you, Maka! Don't let me down!"

"I'll certainly try not to, sir."


	9. In the Mornings (Dreams)

_The scene is hazy around the edges, as if seen in a dream. A bedroom is shown. The color scheme seems to consist of white and ivory, the black carpet and mahogany furniture set the only contrasting things in the room. A large white cat with a black star on its head sleeps at the foot of the bed that is against one wall; the bedset is pure white. There seems to be a large figure on the bed, the heads of black and blue the only thing distinguishing it as two closely entwined people. One begins to stir, yawning and looking up at the person belonging to the blue head of hair. The awake figure bops the other on the nose._

_"Star." _

_"Mmphf..."_

_"Star!"_

_"Nghgh." Kid scowled and thumped him on the shoulder. He was curled against the bluenette, head rested on one shoulder with Black Star's arm wrapped possessively around him._

_"Get uuuuuup," Kid whined._

_"Nn." With a slight pout, the shinigami straddled his lover's clothed hips with his own and leaned down, pressing their lips together languorously: like they had all the time in the world, like they didn't care who saw. Black Star blinked his eyes open, returning the kiss for a moment before smiling easily and wrapping his arms around the shinigami's waist. He flipped them over, kissing Kid's forehead, eyelids, nose, cheeks and chin before finally his mouth, Kid giggling through the process with a pleasant flush on his cheeks. The assassin looked down at the other in complete adoration. The gold band on his left hand glinted in the morning sunlight._

_"Morning, Kid." _

_"Daddy! Father!" A little girl ran into the room, giggling as Black Star deftly rolled off his husband and scooped her up. _

_"What have we told you about knocking on doors, Ara?" He chided. She only laughed again, hugging her Daddy tightly while another, slightly older boy breezed in with a blue and a purple ribbon clenched in his hand._

_"Father," he said, walking directly up to Kid. "__**I want pigtails.**__" Kid only blinked before patting the bed next to him, taking it in stride._

_"Alright, but you've got two different colored ribbons-"_

_"They both look black to __**me**__." Kid pursed his lips. White Star was sensitive about his color-blindness._

_"Right. Well. I'm going to use black ones instead, alright?" White Star shrugged passively, sitting down and letting go of the ribbons. They fluttered to the floor._

_"I want them like Auntie Maka's."_

_"Alright, White Star."_

_The four sat in comfortable silence for awhile until the padding of feet was heard. There was a knock on the door frame, following a head peeking around it. The girl looked to be in her late teens. She had ash blonde hair and green eyes; when she grinned sheepishly, her teeth were pointed._

_"Thanks for letting me stay the night... Mom and Dad flipped their lids once they found out I'd been seeing this boy without their knowledge. Mom grumbled something about an ox..? I dunno. It was so random." The husbands shared knowing looks._

_"It's fine, Kami."_

_"Alright, it's time for all of you to get ready for school, let's go!" Black star set Eve down then clapped his hands together. The three left at their own paces, Kami shutting the door quietly behind them. Black Star fell back on the bed, looking up at Kid lovingly._

_"It's crazy around here," Kid whispered, lacing their left hands together. _

_"Yeah, it is," Black Star agreed, kissing the back of Kid's hand. "I wouldn't have it any other way, though." Kid smiled at this, laying down and snuggling up to his husband._

_"Neither would I. I love you, Star."_

_"I love you too, Kid." The two lean closer and start a heated kiss, hands grasping and groping as quiet moans fill the air until their door slams open._

_"FATHER! MY PIGTAILS ARE __**NOT**__ SYMMETRICAL!"_

_The scene fades to black as Kid begins to wake._

* * *

><p>That dream was the second sign that Kid was falling for Black Star, that this wasn't just... Whatever it was. Activities of a sexual nature.<p>

Kid, of course, was a little bit terrified of the implications.

* * *

><p>Black Star woke lazily, yawning. He would have stretched his arms but Kid was currently occupying them. It wasn't uncommon, them sleeping like this. Since what had since been dubbed 'The Incident With Kid's Dad', Black Star stayed at Kid's for the night or vice versa. It had been three days since said incident; Black Star found himself hard, as he'd just woke from a<em> very<em> nice dream about that particular shower that involved him fucking Kid into oblivion.

Not that they'd actually had sex. They rutted, they made out; that was the extent of it, but it was okay that way. Black Star liked it better, he thought. There wasn't a lot of room for error or embarrassment the way there would be if they were actually fucking. The bluenette mulled this over, admitting to himself that he'd like to try going down on each other though; he'd have to mention it to Kid. Speaking of Kid...

"Morning, Kiddo," Black Star said as the shinigami stretched against him, making Black Star aware of the shorter's own morning predicament.

"Morning, Star," he grumbled, lips latching on to his neck. Black Star was more then mildly surprised. He was... Moderately surprised, he decided. Normally in the mornings Kid was more affectionate; the fact that this particular morning Kid had decided that he was going to display his affections by starting off immediately with what was considered foreplay between them... Well, Black Star wasn't going to complain. That wasn't what had surprised him, though. No, it was the grumbled 'Star' that had sent his heart racing, a flush to his cheeks, a small tightening of his hold on the male. 'Star' was something Kid only called him when they were fooling around and Kid was being pushed over the edge, when he was mewling and whining under the bluenette as he teased the smaller, when he was coming undone and shooting his come over the two of them. It was what Kid called him when they were having their more 'intimate' moments (AKA: getting each other off), not what Kid said when he first woke up in Black Star's arms in the morning and the sunlight was gleaming off of his mussed hair.

That was the first time Black Star had a small spark of hope that maybe, just maybe, Kid felt the same way he did and was afraid of saying anything.

Kid grunted and Black Star looked at him, smiling genuinely at the look on Kid's face as the meister rubbed his need against Black Star's thigh.

"You're so _needy," _Black Star informed the other huskily, sliding his hand underneath the covers and grasping Kid's swollen erection. He locked their lips together, swallowing the few moans and pants Kid let out as Black Star jerked him off, only pulling away from those lips to hear Kid's soft grunt of satisfaction as he came on the blanket and Black Star's hand.

"Hmm..." Kid let out, pulling the bluenette down into another kiss. "Want me to do you, too?" He muttered against the taller's lips. Black Star only shook his head, proceeding to deepen the kiss. He angled Kid's body toward him, placing a hand on his hip as the black-haired teen threw a leg around the bluenette's own hips, Black Star's erection caught between their stomachs.

"Mm," Kid hummed out as their tongues slid together easily, slowly, as if they'd been doing this for years. This wasn't a new thing- their behavior in the morning, that is. Things were slow and easy until they took a shower together- always together- at which point things would heat up, mouths meshing and teeth sometimes knocking in the passion of everything until one of them (usually Kid) was overwhelmed and painted them both with seed, the second following not long after. For now, though, they were just... Together. Somewhere in the back of their minds they both acknowledged that it felt right- wholly, irrevocably right. One brushed it off as hope grew in the other.


	10. Photographs (Homophobia)

"One morning," Black Star continued the story quietly as he picked at food he wasn't going to eat, "Maka barged in without even any warning!" Black Star chuckled darkly, no real humor or happiness in his tone. "She's lucky we were only making out, honestly."

* * *

><p>"Wanna hear about the day I found Garth?" It was lunchtime. Now they were sitting at the table together eating sandwiches. Maka had just fessed up about her little lie, which Soul had taken really well. He was always trying to look cool. Tch. Soul's face gave an irritated little twitch but he nodded anyway. Maka giggled, taking a sip of Gatorade before launching in.<p>

* * *

><p>"You know that habit Maka has of knowing absolutely everything about everyone?" Liz nodded intently. Kid was curled up into a ball, leaning against her as Patty drew a giraffe while sitting on the floor. Giving up all hope of not thinking about Black Star (<em>His<em> Star, he thought fiercely, though it wasn't true anymore; not that it ever really was.), Kid acknowledged that he was really going to fucking miss that broad chest and strong arms, tan skin and lazy smile, enchanting laugh and soft lips... With a muffled sob he curled closer to Liz. After a few minutes he composed himself, starting again as he swiped a hand across his eyes.

"Well, she knew about Black Star and I."

...

Maka threw open the bedroom door, hoping like hell the two were somewhat decent because she _really _did not want to see them in the throes of passion or something of the sort. What she did see still shocked her a little bit. Both boys were covered up to their waists by the blankets and they were... Well for one they were both covered in hickeys, given the fact that they were fuck-buddies (she had come to this conclusion by realising that if they were dating, they'd have told _at least_ their friends); but for two they were... Kissing. Kid was lying half atop Black Star, hands curled on the bluenette's chest as if he'd been there before they began their lip-lock. Maka stood rooted to the spot in stunned silence.

When she said kissing, she didn't mean some hot, frenzied, passionate thing. They were kissing slowly, languidly, like they were in their own world. Like they were dating, or something. Black Star's fingers were dancing across Kid's back, tracing patterns at random. Kid's lips were curled up in a small grin as he brought his hands up to cup Black Star's face, tilting his head into the kiss for a moment before pulling away.

"Shower?" Kid asked, voice somewhere between eager and seductive and Maka could literally _see_ Black Star melting, his face softening as he curled a hand behind Kid's neck and tucked some stray hair behind the boy's ear, leaning up and placing a lingering kiss to the shinigami's lips.

That was when Maka Albarn knew, without a doubt, that Black Star was absolutely in love with Death the Kid. It was also when she decided now was a great time to make herself known. She scoffed, making both males yelp and try to hide under the blankets.

"Honestly, could you two make it any _more _obvious you're screwing?" She asked somewhat scornfully. Black Star popped up from under the blanket, glaring as he pointed at her accusingly.

"We are_ not _fucking!" Black Star said back, nearly pouting. Kid squirmed his way under the bluenette's arm and peeked at Maka. She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? What's this, then?" She gestured toward the two who shrugged simultaneously in response.

"Dunno, but it's good," Black Star responded bluntly. Kid punched his arm half-heartedly and then Maka noticed that Kid- Kid was completely comfortable sitting next to Black Star naked in bed. He was usually cold and crisp and distant but now... There was a flush to his cheeks, a glow to his eyes. She decided to observe this... Situation very, very carefully. It could be... Good for the two.

It could also be very, very bad.

"Get ready," she finally said. "We're all going out today." She turned to leave, then looked back at the two. "And for God's sake, please try not to take long in the shower." Then she did leave, closing the door and leaning against it. Palms flat against the wood, face turned to the ceiling. She hadn't expected them to look so... In love. Which they _did, _no one who would've seen them the way Maka had could argue that fact.

"You two..." She murmured. "What are you doing to yourselves?"

* * *

><p>Kid leaned his back against Black Star's chest, humming contentedly as Black Star ran a soapy washcloth over his torso, giving Kid a slow, easy hand job and nibbling his neck while the shinigami pressed his hips back into Black Star's front. They obviously didn't have time for their usual activities, but this was nice too, Kid decided. Almost like a continuance of their sluggish, lazy mornings.<p>

After they had both come and were cleaned from their less than usual shower activities, Kid latched on to the assassin (who carried him back into Kid's room with a couple of towels) like a baby koala.

"You're ridiculous," Black Star informed him, nuzzling the top of his head and falling back on the bed. Kid nipped at Black Star's shoulder and kissed his jaw; Black Star pushed his hands through wet black hair.

"We have to get ready, otherwise Maka'll barge back in," Black Star muttered reluctantly. Kid let out a whine, kissing the corner of the assassin's mouth.

"Can't we just lay here for a moment?" He grumbled, curling into the other's warm (and somewhat wet) embrace. The bluenette sighed.

"Don't I wish. C'mon, we really gotta get ready, Kiddo." It took a few minutes but Black Star finally succeeded in getting them both dressed (and getting all their visible hickeys_ concealed_). They left the room hand in hand, finding Maka in the living room. She stood up, eyes falling to their entwined fingers. Kid looked down, blinking. He hadn't really noticed 'til now because they held hands so often. But wasn't that something couples did..? He slipped his hand out of the taller male's, standing up straighter.

This was the third sign Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

"Are we going, or not?" He spoke crisply, adjusting his sleeves and not straightening his tie, because he didn't _wear _one (but he would have straightened it if he wore one). Maka stared at him, eyes searching, before she nodded.

"Yeah. I'm bored and I haven't seen either of you outside of school for days... Now I know why." She twitched a brow up and Black Star snorted. Kid inclined his head to the door.

"Let's go, then."

* * *

><p>Maka walked out the door, Black Star pressing a quick kiss to Kid's head (who reciprocated with a hand sifting through the back of the assassin's hair) before following the blonde, throwing a casual arm around her neck while Kid appeared on her other side, cool and collected.<p>

"What're we up to today, Albarn?" Black Star asked easily, pulling her into a light choke-hold. She worked her way out of it and laughed as they walked.

"I don't know, I figured we could just walk around the city... I've been meaning to go to the pet shop. I kind of miss having a cat around," she admitted sheepishly, cheeks coloring faintly. Blair had moved out officially a few months ago. Black Star grinned.

"The great Black Star will help you pick out a cat fit for the Gods!" The assassin bellowed, Kid chuckling in response. At one point, the bluenette noted, Kid would have rolled his eyes. He took this as a good sign, hiding a small grin.

The three meisters walked around the city for hours, laughing, joking and all around enjoying each other's company.

"Oh!" Maka squealed, pointing to a photo booth. "Can we? Pleeeeeease?" Black Star laughed, ruffling her hair.

"Sure, Maka," he responded. Kid gave a small nod; Black Star held him back as Maka walked toward the booth. The bluenette grabbed the shorter's head, pressing a kiss into his hair and murmuring. "Let's come back another time and take some by ourselves, okay?" Kid nodded in response, looking slightly flushed.

The three loaded into the booth, Kid on Black Star's lap due to the small bench. The first picture was them all smiling (smirking, in Kid's case); the second, Black Star was giving Maka a noogie while Kid clung to his neck for dear life. The third showcased Kid giving Black Star an irritated look as he wrapped an arm around Maka and the fourth... The fourth picture showed Maka with her tongue stuck out, one eye closed and the other framed by her fingers in a sideways 'v' shape. Next to her, Kid had an arm wrapped around the bluenette's neck, the taller's own arm around Kid's waist while his other hand lifted Kid's chin up so they could kiss; Kid was flushing, but both were grinning against the other's lips with their eyes closed.

...

"That's... I have to be honest, Kid, that's cute," Liz said quietly, smiling lightly at how _happy_ her meister looked in the photo strip. It had been hidden in a desk drawer so she and Patty wouldn't find it. All she could wonder was how they had gotten from there... To here.

* * *

><p>"Aren't they cute?" Maka asked, handing the photo strip over to Soul. He blinked at it, looking surprised, then nodded.<p>

"Yeah, actually. They look so... Happy." Maka's face shifted into a smile.

"They_ were. _I don't understand how they can think that they're only having sex." Soul blinked.

"Didn't Star say they weren't even sleeping together?" Maka grinned.

"They weren't. Not then. You'll see."

* * *

><p>"Black Star..." Tsubaki said quietly, finger tracing the meisters' outlines on the photo strip. "You both look..." She didn't say 'in love', but Black Star got the implication.<p>

"Mm. Yeah, well." He shrugged a shoulder, swirling his cold tea around with two fingers. "We weren't. He wasn't." Tsubaki looked up sharply, sighing at the look on her meister's face.

"Oh, Black Star..."

...

After the three meisters got their pictures they walked around more, finally coming to the pet store. Walking in, they were bombarded by howls, meowing and chirping. They were greeted by a decent looking guy. He eyed Maka appreciatively, looking affronted when she squealed and pushed past him, heading straight for the kittens. Kid glared at the guy coldly and Black Star took a step forward, lowering his voice.

"Who do you think you are, staring at my little sister that way?" He growled dangerously. The guy paled.

"Hey, look I didn't-"

"You're just lucky her_ boyfriend_ isn't here," the assassin continued, glancing at Maka. She was still just cooing at the kittens, unaware of the scene behind her. Strictly speaking, Soul wasn't her boyfriend. Black Star knew that, but they were partners. And well... Come on, everyone knew there was _something _going on there. "He would _slice your wimpy ass to __**ribbons**." _ Black Star felt a hand curl on his shoulder. He looked back and there was Kid, eyebrow raised with a small smile on his mouth. Oh, how Black Star wanted to devour that smile.

"Now, now, _Star,"_ Kid said, actually _moaning _the name in his ear quietly enough that it was nearly inaudible. Black Star's cock twitched, starting to grow. "We wouldn't want the poor boy to have a heart attack," he continued in normal tones, steering Black Star away.

"Blue-haired fag," the boy hissed out and the next thing Black Star knew Kid had spun away from him and slammed his fist into the other guy's nose with a satisfying crunch. His fists were clenched and he was trembling visibly, eyes blazing down on the whimpering asshole.

This was the fourth sign that Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

This was the second time the latter had hope that this thing between them was something more.

"Kid," Black Star murmured, resting his chin on the other's shoulder and covering those clenched fists with his own hands. "Kid, Kid, Kid. It's okay. I don't care," he whispered into the other meister's neck. "I don't care, Kid. He's shit anyway. It's okay." After more quiet murmuring on his throat and fingers tracing on white knuckles, Kid relaxed a little, giving one more glare to the guy on the floor and turning around to bury his face in the bluenette's chest as long arms wrapped around a tan neck and a chin tucked over that head. "It's fine," Black Star whispered again. "I'm okay. Everything is okay." The guy glared up at them, opening his mouth to-

"I'd keep your fucking mouth shut if I were you," Maka hissed at him. She had a fluffy gray kitten in her hands, who hissed at the guy as well. It would be funny at a different time, Black Star mused.

"What the devil is going on here?!" A woman shrieked, coming out from the back. She had a large bag of dog food in her hands but she dropped it. Kid showed his face, flushed in anger.

"I want him fired," Kid spat, shooting daggers at the disgusting excuse for a human being on the floor.

"Young man, you can't punch one of my employees and then demand I fire him without cause-!"

"With all due respect, ma'am," Maka spoke, scratching the kitten under the chin, "your 'employee' is a homophobe."

"I want him fired," Kid spoke again, voice low. "I want him banned from here."

"I'm sorry, sir, but that's not your deci-"

"Actually, it kind of is," a different voice mused, a cranking sound being heard. Black Star and Maka turned, Kid keeping his face hidden in Black Star's chest.

"Professor Stein?" Maka asked. The woman's eyes widened.

"You three are from Shibusen?" She finally got out.

"Yes. Kid, actually, _does_ have the authority to fire people who are not teachers, doctors or business owners and the like, as long as he has probable cause... Seeing as he is Lord Death's son." The woman nearly fainted.

"He's a homophobe," Maka put in.

"And a disgusting pervert," Black Star added.

"I want him _fired," _ Kid mumbled, voice muffled. The woman sighed, massaging her temples.

"Nate, you're fired," she said shortly. He stared up at her in disbelief and she ground her teeth together. "Get _out."_ The guy (Nate) scrambled up, glaring at them all as he left the shop. Everyone stood in silence for a moment until...

"So..." Maka held up the purring, fluffy bundle. "Can I buy this cat now?

* * *

><p>"You know, Kiddo..." Black Star whispered later that night. Kid was curled up in his arms as per usual, placing soft kisses on the bluenette's neck and shoulder. They both had pajama bottoms on, which was weird. They had usually done something of a sexual nature by now, but neither really seemed in the mood. The day had been nice, been slow (except for that one asshole, but) and neither seemed inclined to change it.<p>

"Mm?" Kid asked, reaching a hand out to play with Black Star's nipple.

"It was pretty sexy today when you punched that guy." He could feel Kid's blush on his arm but didn't comment, only rubbing the back of Kid's thigh up and down.

"...Shut up."

"No, really! I got a boner and everything. I wanted to just smash you into a wall and f..." He trailed off, clearing his throat. Kid grinned up at him, pulling the head of blue hair down to kiss him. It started off slow but soon became heated, Black Star sitting up and Kid crawling into his lap. After awhile they pulled away, foreheads pressed together as they caught their breath, Black Star whispering soon after.

"I really wanted to smash you into a wall and fuck you."


	11. The End of the Beginning (Desperation)

"WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE UP!" Maka was bouncing on Kid's bed (the side that always stayed unused) and yelling for no apparent reason at her two friends. Kid was grunting and swatting at the air, nuzzling his head into Black Star's neck, who used this as an opportunity to make Kid straddle him. He leaned up and kissed the other slowly, ignoring the blonde's gagging noises. That was generally how mornings seemed to be going, nowadays.

"Good morning," Kid murmured, feeling Black Star's morning 'present' against his backside and proceeding to giggle, eyes still droopy and cheeks still flushed from sleep.

"Right, well, you two've had your good morning kiss- that's my cue to leave." Yes, this was a thing now- Good morning and night kisses, hello and goodbye kisses, the occasional I'll-see-you-later grope, '_just because' _kisses; all Maka could think was "YOU TWO ARE SO FUCKING DUMB ABOUT THIS THAT I'VE RESORTED TO SWEARING." By 'this' she of course meant their _feelings._ Pesky little things. "Oh! I came on to remind you- everyone's coming back tomorrow, okay?" With that she shut the door.

* * *

><p>The two meisters looked at each other, feeling the same- a mix of excitement and disappointment like they had when the weapons left.<p>

"... Guess that means I should bring all my stuff home, huh?" Black Star asked, huffing and leaning forward to lick slowly along the shinigami's collarbone. The two had been practically sharing a room for a month and a half; rarely did they go to Black Star's apartment.

"Yeah, I guess..." Kid mumbled back, not at all happy with the thought. He put his hands on Black Star's shoulders, pushing him back into the bed. His own erection was pinned between their stomachs as he placed his hands carefully on either side of the blue haired assassin's face to bring it up near his. Their lips were barely an inch apart; then Kid let out a whimper and locked their mouths together, kissing the assassin like that mouth were his lifeline and Black Star's hands were all over him; his hips, his chest, his back, his thighs and Kid couldn't remember ever feeling that warm or happy or turned-on and what seemed like only seconds later he had painted their stomachs with his come, Black Star following closely after Kid's small, broken mewl of "Sta-a-ar..!"

They both lay there, staring at each other for a moment before Kid pressed his face into the taller's neck. "I don't want you to go," Kid mumbled and he felt like _crying_ which didn't even make sense. It's not like they'd never see each other again; they went to school together, they hung out on practically a daily basis anyway, they could still continue this little affair when the girls weren't around and stuff...

_But it's not the same, _a voice in his head said traitorously_. He won't hold you every night, or take showers with you in the morning, or lay around in bed doing nothing when you're both too tired from the night before._

Kid shook it off with a scowl, pressing his nose into his lover's neck and taking a deep breath.

"Hey... C'mere," the assassin nearly whined, turning his head. "Kiss me again."

And so Kid did. They stayed like that for most of the day: kissing and rubbing together sinuously to get each other off rather than actually going to school for the last day of training. By the time 2 P.M. rolled around, the two were _literally _dripping with come (and exhausted) as they lay in one another's arms.

"We should... Clean up," Kid panted against his counterpart's lips.

"Nn... Bath sounds... Nice," the assassin mumbled back.

"Should probably... Rinse the come off... First..."

"Mhm..." And they promptly fell asleep holding each other.

* * *

><p>Black Star blinked open his eyes and noted two things: it was dark and Kid was awake before him for once. The shinigami was placing small, unhurried, open-mouthed kisses on Black Star's neck, chest, jaw and face.<p>

"Morning," Black Star whispered hoarsely, a hand coming up to run through Kid's hair and turn his head for a peck on the lips.

"More like night..." Kid murmured, resting against the other and closing his eyes. The assassin's chest clenched; he didn't want to leave this bed ever, certainly not to go back to his own apartment. With a heaving sigh he finally spoke.

"Shower, Kiddo?" Kid nodded, humming and wrapping himself around the other.

"Carry me?" The bluenette smiled somewhat sadly, standing up and supporting Kid by the thighs.

"I always do, don't I?" They were both quiet, Kid's head resting on the taller's shoulder as they listened to the sound of their breathing in the high-ceilinged bathroom. Black Star reached out and turned on the water with a shaking hand, scolding himself inwardly. This wasn't a big deal; he couldn't stay with Kid every night, so what? (At this point they stepped in the shower, Kid still clinging to him.) It shouldn't _matter;_ they weren't dating, it wasn't like they'd just be able to explain away their excessive amount of time spent together at night if they continued this way. It shouldn't matter... It didn't matter!

... So why did this feel like a death sentence?

That was the fifth warning Black Star was given that this needed to stop.

* * *

><p>Kid didn't know what was up with him. It was so quiet, he was so quiet... There was no reason for him to be feeling this way, like a part of him was being torn to shreds. It was unsettling, he didn't want to deal with it, he didn't know <em>how <em>to deal with it... So he just clung to Black Star like some needy brat, keeping his face hidden so he couldn't see the one above him, so he didn't burst into hysterical sobs and beg the other to... What? He didn't even know.

This was the fifth sign that Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

"Kiddo," Black Star choked out finally. Kid did nothing, but the way he said it after (_"Kid..."_) made Kid look up and he could _see_ it, see the desperation in the bluenette's eyes, the desperation he was sure was mirrored in his and then...

They were kissing. Like they did in the mornings when they were still groggy or too tired to do anything else, like they'd been together for years, like they had all the time in the world to just _be_ together. Then they pulled apart and Kid was crying hysterically and Black Star had his face pressed into Kid's shoulder and they were both talking at once.

"We have to talk every day, Star-"

"-nd I'll walk you to class when I can-"

"-u'll come over at least once every weekend, right? Liz and Patty are usually-"

"-baki does a lot of activities during the week, we can find time then, Kid-"

"-aka will cover for us, right? Right?"

For a moment they just stared at each other and then the bluenette was grinning and the shinigami was covering his red face with his hands and they both felt that awful feeling ebbing away, leaving them light and happy.

"This isn't the end, Kiddo," he muttered into that black hair. "I'm not done with you yet. Don't know if I ever will be," he joked (but not really) as he squeezed the other's thighs lightly. Kid scoffed.

"You're such a sap, Black Star," he grumbled, taking a nipple in his mouth and tugging gently.

"And you're dumb, Kiddo," was his own response, hiking the other up so they could kiss again; and kiss they did.

_**END PART ONE**_


	12. The Art of Honor-Defending (Family?)

"The next day... You all came home." The room was silent as the sisters looked at Kid with pity. He had his back to them, looking out the window. He was hunched over, arms wrapped around himself, knuckles white. He was trembling, staring out the window at the storm numbly as lightning flashed, thunder crashed. This entire experience, telling it back to the girls, it hurt. It hurt the same way it had when he had thought he wouldn't be able to see the blue haired idiot anymore, the way it had when... It just hurt. He wanted it to be gone, done, over. Ended.

"Liz, I... I can't... Talk about this anymore," Kid ground out. He swallowed thickly, flinching as a hand came down lightly on his shoulder.

"Kid," Liz said softly, "it... It really will he-" Kid shrugged her hand off.

"No," he shot back coldly. "It won't." He couldn't see, but her eyes were blazing.

"Kid," she stated dangerously. "You have been... Been a wreck these past few months. Whenever you've been home you've either been moody or locked up in your room... And then you're around Black Star and," her tone softened here as she squeezed his shoulder, "your face lights up, you grin, your eyes are sparkling..." She felt his shoulders tense up. "We all knew that... Something was going on. You let yourself go when you're with him, Kid. You were so happy...

"So what happened? I think you owe us an explanation, Kid. We want to make this better for you." After a few tense minutes, Kid nodded slightly. He was still hunched over by the dreary window, knuckles still white with his arms around himself. He was still shaking, but now... There was just a little, tiny spark in his eyes.

"Fine."

...

"Kiddo!" Black Star bellowed, nearly tackling the other boy to the ground as he jumped on him. Kid started but caught the blue haired meister, only stumbling a couple steps. He did consider falling on purpose just to make the other fall as well but ultimately decided against it because of the way Black Star could (and would, he was sure) take advantage of that situation no matter who was there to see.

"Black Star," he muttered, but his back was turned to the other meisters (who were also waiting for their partners) so he smiled and Black Star nuzzled his hair, kissing his lover's head.

"Hm... Couldn't sleep last night," the assassin murmured, legs locking around Kid's middle and hands playing with the hair atop his head.

"Me either," the shinigami replied as he stroked the other's calf. "Bed was too empty."

"Trust me, I know the feeling," Black Star sighed. Both of them had gray crescent moons under their eyes from lack of sleep the night before, but anyone who would see them would say they looked well rested simply because of the fact that being in each other's company was now doing that- making them look... Radiant, as it were.

"Hey, Kiddo," the taller whispered huskily, causing to shorter to shiver in arousal as the other moved around until Kid felt a large bulge pressing into his back. He gave a short gasp as Black Star chuckled. "This is what being around you does to me, Kiddo," he continued in the shinigami's ear, giving it a nip. The black haired meister let out a quiet moan, face pink.

"Your gay is showing," Maka informed them idly; they both started and gave a simultaneous yelp until they realized it was just her. "Honestly, anyone could have just found out your secret. You're awful at hiding this." Black Star gave a sheepish grin, reaching down and groping at Kid's chest.

"H-Hey! Black Star! Hey, get off!" Kid yelled, causing a few people to look over. They merely chuckled, turning back to their previous conversations and the like. "Black Star, what the fuck?" Kid hissed quietly. Black Star merely put his head to the side, gripping Kid's hair so they faced each other and placing a firm kiss to his mouth.

"Hiding in plain sight," the bluenette murmured against the other's lips, smiling. Kid just shook his head. They both seemed to have forgotten Maka was even there. After a few minutes Black Star finally slid down from Kid's back, hand lingering at Kid's side.

"I see you're still a little blue haired fag," a voice sneered behind them and Kid whirled, taking a step in front of both his friends.

"I see you're still a homophobic asshole," Maka retorted.

"How's your nose?" Black Star cackled and Kid felt a warning hand placed on his lower back.

Nate laughed, then flipped them the double bird. He zeroed in on Kid.

"And you. Daddy's little faggot?" Nate cooed. Kid's hand shot out to hold his lover back as he lunged forward.

"Black Star." The bluenette's chest was heaving; Kid could tell he was full of unbridled fury, the way Kid had been when the whelp had insulted Black Star at the pet shop. Nate laughed maliciously. He was a typical douche looking kind of guy with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. Too pretty to be considered ugly, too homely to be considered handsome. Average. Boring. In need of _attention_.

"That's right, Daddy's boy, be sure to hold your little boyfriend back," Nate said airily.

"So, what then?" Black Star asked, voice strained and fists clenched. "We're just going to... To let him say this shit?"

"What," a pause as Ox adjusts his glasses, "seems to be the problem here, Nathan?" Nate (Nathan?) scowled, face darkening as the other meisters of Spartoi joined their little group. Then, though, his face brightened and he turned on his prey, pointing at each of them.

"Whore for hire." Kim.

"Sexually confused super nerd." Ox.

"Racist bastard." Kilik. Then, he turned back to Black Star and Kid, a cruel smile twisting his lips.

"Then, of course, we have our resident _faggots,_" he hissed, and Kid had to hold Black Star back again.

"You shut your fucking mouth," Black Star snarled. He was standing in front of Kid and Maka protectively, ready to pounce if need be.

"Leave them alone," Kid said finally, coldly as he wrenched Black Star behind him and took a step forward. "Your quarrel is with me, not any of them." Nate laughed at that.

"You're so _fucking _dumb," he snarled. "Okay, so you got me fired from my stupid job. But _he _kept me from what I really want." Kid heard slow footsteps as Nate pointed at Black Star, then slowly moved his finger to Maka. The footsteps sped up a little. "My pretty... little... _virgin_." The steps were running now and Nate looked behind Kid. His eyes widened, his brows furrowed and he barely mouthed a "Soul..?" before there was a flash of white hair and a sickening crunch that had Black Star cheering and Kid chuckling as he leant back into the small touch from Black Star on his back. Soul shook out his hand, grimacing a bit.

"Family," he said monotonously. "Gotta love 'em."


	13. Malice and Madness (Fuck You)

"Oh my fucking- that little bitch said those things to you?" Liz demanded. Kid shrugged indifferently, still staring out the window. Patty had long since left Kid in the capable hands of her sister.

"I didn't care what he said about me," Kid murmured. "Just Black Star. I guess I should've realized then that I..." He trailed off, looking out the window again.

* * *

><p>"Black Star! Why didn't you tell me he was saying things like that?!" He shrugged in response. The assassin was curled up on the couch with a blanket that smelled of his former lover wrapped around him.<p>

"Didn't want to get mad and yell at you, Tsubaki," he muttered back, burying his nose in his blanket and taking a deep breath. She frowned but he never saw it, too busy beating himself up for still being in love with that stupid, stupid jerk.

* * *

><p>"I <em>still,<em>" Maka muttered, head in Soul's lap as he played with her loose hair, "can't believe you're related to that asshole, Nathan."

"Nn. Sometimes it's hard for me to believe, too," he teased, brushing a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged, turning and curling into Soul with her arms wrapped 'round his stomach.

...

"Family?" Maka echoed, brows furrowed. Soul nodded, face twisting in distaste at the body on the ground. He nudged it with a foot.

"Not well-liked family, but yes. He's a meister without a partner, as well. And... Out cold." Soul sighed, looking up at his partner. "Oh, yeah." He grinned, stepping forward and picking her up in a bear hug. Kilik, Kim and Ox left unceremoniously to greet their own partners as Maka returned the hug, smiling into Soul's hair.

"This entire training thing was fucking _dumb,_" Soul informed her as he set her down gently on her feet. She nodded.

"You don't have to tell me twice."

"Black Star!"

"Kid!" The two meisters turned around only to be nearly bowled over by their weapons.

"Tsubaki," Black Star said affectionately, patting her head as Kid bestowed similar affection on his own weapons. "It's good to see you," he continued quietly, squeezing her into a hug. After everyone hugged and displayed all the right affections and greetings, the focus turned to the meister on the ground.

"Who's this?" Patty asked curiously, squatting down and poking his cheek.

"An asshole," Black Star spat at the same time Soul, with an irritated voice, said,

"My cousin." Everyone was quiet for a moment and then the guy on the ground began to stir, a groan escaping his lips as his eyes fluttered open and he turned to Soul while he struggled to sit up.

"Care to explain why you punched my lights out, cousin-mine?" He asked sarcastically, touching his nose gingerly and groaning; his fingers came back red and Kid actually_ sniggered._

"You got something to say, faggot?" Nate sneered, prompting Black Star to let out a pure, animalistic roar of fury and lunge at him. Nate screeched, trying to scramble backwards as cursing filled the air and then Kid found a way to restrain him, planting his feet and standing his ground even while Black Star fought against him tooth and nail. Nate chuckled darkly.

"That's right, Daddy's boy, reign in your little boyfriend," he taunted and in a flash Black Star had been deposited behind the shinigami as he stepped forward and kicked the other across the large sidewalk, skin scraping against the pavement and leaving streaks of red as the blonde cried out. Kid walked forward slowly, hands in his pockets and squatted down next to Nate who tried to scramble away but only hit another wall. Kid was furious... There were black lines vertically down his mouth.

"When," Kid asked in a dangerously low tone, "are you going to learn to stop provoking me?" Nate only smirked, cocking his head and speaking quieter than before.

"Still defending your little boyfriend?" He crooned. Kid let out a dark chuckle, leaning forward slightly and making the blonde flinch.

"Trust me," Kid uttered, "he's far from _little._" The blonde's face flushed at the implication and another snigger bubbled out of Kid's mouth. "Wanna hear a secret,_ Nathan?_" He practically purred; the blonde shook his head furiously, eyes wide. Kid pouted. "No? Well, I'll tell you anyway," he said conspiratorially, leaning forward only slightly and placing a hand next to his mouth like he was trying to shield his words.

"Black Star isn't my boyfriend and you've got just about the worst case of internalized homophobia I've ever seen." With that, the hand by his mouth slammed down on to the blonde's face, eliciting a scream to echo thought the air. Kid kept applying more pressure and Nathan was just screaming, screaming, screaming-

"Kid." With the one word from his lover the shinigami pulled away and out of his madness-induced daze, looking a little sick with himself after a moment. Black Star merely hauled him up and slung an arm around Kid's neck.

"Well, I'd say it's time to go home, yeah? I propose we go to the manor and watch dumb movies while Maka complains about it not being Jersey Shore." Everyone still seemed a little shocked by Kid's behavior except for the bluenette, who took it in stride. After a few seconds of silence the girls all began chattering about movies, walking down the sidewalk and leaving Nathan behind despite his protests. Soul followed while Kid and Black Star stayed behind for a moment. Kid turned around, burying his face in Black Star's neck and clutching the back of his shirt while the taller pressed kisses to the top of his head.

"It's okay," Black Star whispered as Kid trembled in his arms. The two had forgotten Nathan, who watched with wide eyes. "Everything's okay." For a few seconds it seemed like Kid would completely fall apart (not in the good way) but then he pulled himself together. Black Star coaxed a kiss from him, hand moving up to tangle in black hair as their mouths moved together hungrily. The bluenette's other hand moved south and gripped Kid by the ass to press their groins together, both moaning softly before ending the kiss, foreheads pressing together.

"Mmh. We should stay together tonight," Black Star murmured and Kid nodded eagerly.

"Yes, please," Kid responded quietly, neither of them really thinking about how they'd manage that with everyone home now. They grasped one another's hands, fingers tangling together as they stayed a far enough distance from the others that it wouldn't look suspicious if they happened to glance back there and see them.

They didn't even think about people who may have been behind them.


	14. Movie Night (Trembling)

"I was scared that day," Maka confessed quietly. "Kid... The madness took him over then. I don't think he even realized, but he was... He was doomed from that moment, if he hadn't already been. He was in love with Black Star, even if he couldn't admit it to himself. That wasn't just a friend sticking up for another friend, or someone getting mad about the names some... Some _douchebag _was calling them. That was Kid standing up for someone he cared about... Defending his honor, so to speak, the same way he did at the pet shop." Her lips curled up in a smile at the words she left unsaid hung between them. _The same way you defended mine that day._

...

"Ooh, let's watch _ Friends With Benefits!"_ Patty squealed, grabbing the movie. Kid choked on his candy, much as he had during guy's night. Soul pounded him on the back as Black Star protested.

"What? I don't want to watch some dumb chick flick!" The assassin whined. Maka snickered.

"I think it's a great movie for you to watch, Black Star," she chirped, though only the meisters understood the implications. The bluenette looked at Soul for help but he only shrugged.

* * *

><p>"It'd be uncool to not let the girls choose the first movie," Soul offered, causing the blue haired meister to groan and flop over on Kid's lap. Kid made a show of trying to push the other off but he didn't really mind. He liked the other being close.<p>

About halfway into the movie, Soul slid to the floor and gently scooped his meister up. She had fallen asleep and was slumped against his chest; with a nod to the others he was out the door. Patty, Liz and Tsubaki were all sprawled out on the floor, slowly nodding off while snuggled in their blankets and pillows. Kid could feel Black Star take advantage of the situation by wrapping an arm around his lover's shoulders, lifting the shinigami's chin with a finger. The black haired meister was smiling lazily up at him, half-lidded eyes sliding shut as their lips slanted together with the ease only those who've learned the contours of their counterpart's mouths can achieve. Lips moving in sync, tongues exploring, one of Kid's hands clutching the front of Black Star's shirt. The bluenette had soon swung the other into his lap, hips rocking and low moans escaping throats. Kid had one hand curled around the back of the assassin's neck, the other clutching his hair desperately as the kissing became more frenzied; Black Star's hands hitched under the shinigami's thighs and he stood up, his lover's legs wrapping around his waist.

They made their way toward Kid's room, somehow getting the door opened, shut and locked, at which point they fell onto the bed, Black Star pinning Kid by his wrists and rubbing their erections together. They'd only been apart a day, but it felt like a lifetime. His lips moved against the other's neck while he whispered.

"Kiddo, you trust me, right?"

"**_Ngh_**- Y- Yeah, dumbass, of course I do," he said harshly, arching up into his lover and sucking on his pulse point.

"Can I..? I want to try something new, then," he muttered. For the first time it was the assassin's face that was flushed, not the shinigami's... It was doing wonders for the Death God's confidence. The two separated, Kid lying back with heady eyes and Black Star sitting up with a red face.

"Cute..." Kid murmured at him, making grabby hands. The bluenette obliged, lying down on his friend's chest and listening to the accelerated heartbeat under his ear while his hair was played with.

"What... Do you want to do?" Kid murmured, a finger tracing Black Star's cheek. He shrugged in response, face coloring deeper.

"Don't wanna talk about it," he whined, nuzzling that chest. Kid harrumphed, angling the blue haired head to look at him.

"Just tell me," he grumbled, a lingering kiss placed on swollen lips. The bluenette squirmed, his need pressed against the shinigami's thigh as the other teen's pressed against his own hip.

"Can't I just do it?" The words were grumbled against the fluttering heartbeat and Kid considered it for a moment.

"Yeah, okay." Black Star pushed up on his elbow, brows raised and furrowed.

"Wait- what, really?" He asked tentatively, hand stroking the other's leg.

"Well- ... Yeah," Kid said sheepishly, looking away uncomfortably. "I said I trust you, didn't I?" He added gruffly.

That was the sixth sign Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

* * *

><p>The blue haired meister's features slowly slipped into a grin while he leaned down to kiss his lover passionately. "Okay," he murmured against Kid's mouth. "Okay." Things stayed at their usual pace for awhile after that- scalding kisses placed to lips each time clothing was ripped off, teasing gropes meant to work the other up. Once they were both naked, sweat running down their bodies in small trickles, Kid leaned up and captured the other's lips in another heated kiss.<p>

"Do what you want with me," Kid murmured, gold eyes fluttering up at him through long, damp lashes, thoroughly kissed lips being bitten as the shinigami's legs opened almost imperceptibly wider.

It was all the assassin could do no to shoot his load all over his lover's ass and flushed erection right then. He let out a small, cracked "Fuck-" before leaning down and fumbling to take a small tube out of his jeans. He popped it open and covered two fingers in the stuff as Kid looked on with wide eyes. Black Star's own locked with his.

"Kid," he choked out, because the other still looked so very fuckable and he just wanted to pounce on him, make him moan out that little "Star" always present after one of their trysts. He swallowed and started again. "Kid, you-"

"Star," Kid said softly. "I trust you, okay? Stop making it weird," he teased easily, going up on a elbow and taking the other's face in hand. Black Star nodded, keeping their eyes locked, both of them with red faces and lips that met in a slow kiss as Black Star pressed the tip of a finger into Kid. The bluenette hissed into the other's mouth as Kid's muscles immediately clenched around him.

"Fuck," Kid said, squirming and letting out a laugh, grinning as he captured the other's lips again. "Feels weird," he muttered.

"Relax," Black Star murmured back, wiggling his finger around and finding himself able to push the digit in slowly, up to the last knuckle. Kid squirmed more.

"So fucking weird," Kid grumbled again, pulling Black Star's head in for another kiss. Using that as a distraction, the bluenette initiated a fight for dominance with their tongues while he pumped his finger in and out, loosening the shinigami up for the second one. When Kid stopped squirming Black Star hesitantly pushed the other finger in with the first but stopped immediately at the first knuckle: Kid was scrabbling for something to grip, fingernails digging into Black Star's shoulders as he let out a hiss of air.

"_Fuck, _that_ stings," _he ground out.

"It's supposed to feel good afterwards," Black Star mumbled guiltily. He moved to take them out but Kid's hand shot down and grabbed his wrist, holding it in place as he glared at the assassin. "Don't you _dare," _he spat, shoving Black Star's fingers into himself completely and all at once, hissing as he threw his head back, panting. He looked up after a moment, crooking a finger at Black Star, who obliged. "Make me feel good, Star," he growled, clutching the other by the hair and kissing him furiously. Black Star was mildly surprised by the demands but obliged, pushing those two fingers in and out of the other at a leisurely pace while Kid attacked his mouth.

* * *

><p>Kid went as far as to flip them over; Black Star was now lying on his back, Kid atop him as he moved his hips in tandem with his lover's fingers, trying to make it easier on the bluenette so he'd stop feeling so goddamn guilty. Then Black Star's fingers were twisting, curling inside him and Kid was confused until Black Star touched <em>something<em> that caused his eyes to roll back in his head and a muffled scream to sound from the back of his throat.

"STAR!" He sobbed out, seeing white burst behind his eyelids, forehead slamming down on his lover's shoulder as they came simultaneously: Kid on their stomachs and Black Star up the other meister's back. Kid was trembling, taking heaving breaths as he collapsed on the taller male who in turn rubbed soothing hands up and down his back, not caring it was coated with his seed.

"What the fuck was _that_," he whispered, sounding drained as he laid on top of the other, shaking fingers tracing the bluenette's face, neck, ears, anything he could reach. Black Star smiled, laughing gently and kissing the shinigami's hair all over.

"That, Kiddo, is called a prostate."


	15. Insanity (Explanations)

"Lord Death," Maka said lowly, looking at the floor. It was the day after the incident with Nate on the sidewalk and it had left her feeling more than a little violated. The look in his eyes as he had pointed at her, voice sickly sweet. _'-What I really want; my pretty... little... virgin.'_ She felt dirty; disgusted. Soul defending her had only made her feel safe at the time but now she jumped at the slightest touch from someone else. She scolded herself for it, of course. She hunted down kishins all the time and now she was afraid of some asshole who didn't know when to let something go? But, she supposed, that was the problem. She didn't know how far he would take something. "I have something to report on the private matter you assigned me to." Stein and her Papa looked up curiously while Lord Death nodded his head enthusiastically.

"Okay okay, Maka~!" He said cheerfully. She spared a glance for the other two before shrugging.

"Yesterday, Kid was taken over by madness," she admitted quietly. "That... guyfromthepetstore turned out to be a meister here and Soul's less-than-liked cousin. Soul punched him out because of the things he was saying about us all, so he has another broken nose; not Soul, that guy. He was saying stuff about Black Star and Kid again- specifically that they're the 'blue haired fag' and 'Daddy's little faggot.'" The room's temperature dropped, causing Maka to shiver.

"Then he just kept on attacking Black Star and Kid flew off the handle. He laughed as he caused the guy pain, but... Black Star said his name and then Kid was snapped out of it and he looked completely disgusted with himself." She paused before adding softly, "I think... I think they're falling in love." Lord Death cocked his head then nodded slowly.

"Hmm. Yes. About the madness..." He sighed. "It seems that due to resonating with each other often, the members of Spartoi have... Contracted a little bit of insanity from the black blood in Soul. It's been proven the effects only appear when one is feeling an extreme amount of emotion; that's when you're at your weakest, after all. I didn't want to say anything yet, because it wasn't a problem, but I'm wondering if I should, now..." Maka's eyes were wide but she soon narrowed them, stepping forward and shaking with pure rage.

"You... You didn't think this was important to tell us?" Maka demanded, fists clenched and nails drawing blood from crescent shaped fingernail marks on her skin.

"Maka." A hand was placed on her shoulder and she screamed, rounding on the person and punching them in the face. _Hard. _ And then...

* * *

><p>"Soul..." She whispered, hands covering her mouth in horror before she strode past him without so much as a goodbye. He looked after her with a hand on his cheek.<p>

"What was that about?! What did you do to my little girl?!" Spirit demanded, shaking him by the shoulders.

"Hey! Get off me, old man, I came here to talk to you about this!" Spirit let go of him, eyes narrowed distrustfully. Soul rolled his shoulders back and slouched, hands in his pockets.

"Maka's been jumpy since yesterday, as I'm sure you just saw," he added the second part sarcastically, for his own benefit mostly because he was unsettled. His meister wouldn't talk to him. "I think it has something to do with what Nate has said to her. He doesn't know when to shut his fucking mouth." The room was quiet for a moment. "So, old man, I need you to keep an eye on him. He doesn't have a weapon partner; not Hiro, the other blonde. I'm gonna do everything I can to keep him away from her but I can't be with her, not always. So I'm enlisting your help; Marie's as well, and Spartoi. I'm not letting him get to her again," he growled fiercely. "He doesn't know when to stop." Soul turned around and started walking away.

"Soul Eater." He turned his head back, blinking.

"... Thank you for taking care of my little girl." With a nod of understanding on both sides, Soul left.


	16. Birthday Countdown (Bloody Fingertips)

"Hey, Kiddo?"

"Hmm." It was a week after movie night; our favorite lovers were in an empty classroom at Shibusen (skipping last class, of course). Kid was seated on Black Star's lap, taking pleasure in the sounds of contentment the bluenette was letting out while the shinigami marked his neck.

"Your birthday is soon, right?" Kid ignored the little flutter his heart made at the fact that his lover had remembered. He pulled back, lips tingling from the remaining sensation of Black Star's voice rumbling in his throat.

"Mhm. In exactly eight days, actually." He was pleased with the fact, would have been even more so if not for-

"Oh, yeah, May seventh." Kid made a face of distaste. If not for _that._ Black Star laughed, leaning in to kiss the look off his face. "What do you want then, huh?" The assassin asked, fingers poking at his friend's sides. The shorter let out a yelp, hands gripping the bluenette's biceps for balance. He looked up and glared.

"That _tickles,_" Kid growled, glaring. Black Star only laughed, capturing those lips in another kiss.

"I asked you a question, you know," he teased, nipping at an ear. Kid shrugged.

"I dunno. Whatever, I guess. You could stay the night," he offered hopefully. The bluenette raised an eyebrow, grinning.

"Trust me, I'm going to stay the night regardless." Kid grinned and nuzzled his cheek. "But I've gotta get something for the party, y'know," he complained, kissing the other's forehead. Kid shrugged again, wiggling around.

"Just get whatever, I don't really care," Kid admitted. Black Star frowned and poked his face.

"Why're you making this so difficult, huh?" He grumbled, tilting the smaller's chin up to kiss him again hungrily. Kid moaned into the kiss, hands trailing along the blue haired meister's arms.

"Cause I can," Kid breathed out jokingly, nipping the other's bottom lip. "Really, though-" he sighed in appreciation as Black Star squeezed his backside, "-I don't care what you get me, because my real present will be rolling around with you all night." The bluenette grinned, hoisting Kid up more so their hips could press together firmly.

"Mm..." The shinigami hummed, moving his lips across his lover's face and jaw, teasing an ear between his teeth and paying special attention to the taller meister's collarbones while they rutted against each other, Kid continuing to mark his territory.

That thought was the seventh sign Kid was falling in love with Black Star.

"Hey, I wanna do something," the blue haired meister said, nudging the shorter one. He whined, pressing closer and biting down hard on his shoulder in punishment. The bluenette merely chuckled, standing up and sitting Kid on the desk before undoing the Death God's zipper and fly. "Trust me- you'll like this better," Black Star murmured, leaning forward and kissing his lover as he freed the straining member of his friend from it's confinement. Kid's eyes were wide as Black Star sank to his knees, grinning up at the striped meister. He leaned out and licked from base to tip painfully slowly. Kid's eyes were half lidded but he tried to keep them open so he could watch the bluenette lapping at him like some kind of fucking popsicle and he could pretty much confirm that it turned him on. A lot. When Black Star actually moved his lips over the flushed skin though, Kid groaned and tangled his hands in that blue hair, closing his eyes. Black Star laughed a little bit and with the small hum Kid exploded, whimpering out a wanton "Star...", too overcome by sensations that he flopped back on the desk, breathing in pants. The bluenette smiled affectionately, tucking Kid away and fastening his slacks before lying down atop him. Kid smiled up lazily, sated for the moment.

* * *

><p>Black Star leaned in for kisses and Kid obliged, pulling away to laugh.<p>

"What?"

"I'm kissing you after you just swallowed my come," Kid giggled. "That should be gross but it's not. I just wanna kiss you all day." Black Star smiled, raising an eyebrow.

"If I knew all I had to do to get you to wanna kiss me all the time was suck you off I would've gotten on my knees a lot sooner," he joked. Kid was already getting hard again and Black Star wasn't surprised. His Kiddo was horny a lot (read: all the fucking time).

It didn't even cross his mind as weird that he had referred to him as 'His Kiddo', which was the sixth sign Black Star needed to get out of there.

...

"I knew exactly what I wanted from Black Star for my birthday," Kid admitted quietly. "But I wasn't about to just tell him. I was kind of embarrassed." The storm seemed to have cleared and a beautiful rainbow stretched across the sky. It didn't do anything for Kid's mood, however. "So I just did some research and got what we'd need, with a little help from Maka. And Kilik, I guess." Liz's gaze softened and she looked sad, so sad, on her meister's behalf.

"Oh, Kid..." She whispered, stepping behind him. She wrapped her arms around his hunched shoulders and pressed her face against his hair. "Please tell me you didn't." Kid didn't look at her but he didn't shrug her off.

"We did."

* * *

><p>"Of course, Kiddo knew exactly what he wanted for his fucking birthday. And I gave it to him, because I thought that maybe, no matter how small the chance, he loved me, too." Tsubaki's hands covered her mouth, eyes brimming with tears.<p>

...

"Hey, Kiddo, decided what you want for your birthday yet? Only seven days left, y'know." The two sat in class, reading.

"I'm aware," Kid responded wryly, eyebrow raised.

"If you don't tell me what you want, I'll just have to get you something embarrassing," the bluenette teased, a lock of Kid's hair wrapped around his finger. No one was paying much attention to them; this was practically routine by now. "Like a dildo." Kid had to try really hard not to burst out laughing at that. They were in public; he had to remain composed.

"You wouldn't," Kid pointed out, licking a finger and flipping the page. Black Star seemed to consider this as he carded a hand through soft black hair.

"Yeah, I'll save that for Maka's birthday," he said decisively. Kid choked on his own spit trying not to laugh, then snorted.

"She would _kill_ you," Kid wheezed. Black Star chuckled, throwing an arm around his lover's shoulders and using the other one to gesture at the air.

"Ah, but you see, Kiddo, that's the beauty of the whole process! She'll be too busy gaping like a fish to do anything!" Letting out a snicker, he pressed his face in his friend's shoulder so other people wouldn't see his laughter. Neither of them really noted that Black Star's arm was still around him.

"I'd still run, though, because-"

"Hey! Fags!" Kid's eyebrow twitched and he frowned but continued talking.

"-because once she gains enough of-"

"Hey! Blue hair and Daddy's boy! I'm talking to you!"

"-of her senses back she's going to-"

"HEY!" Nathan was right behind them now, having been continuously walking toward them.

"-to attack you, not to mention if Soul-" Nathan sunk his hands into Kid's hair, fingers digging into the pale scalp as he yanked Kid back so the blonde could glare at him. Hissing in pain Kid's hands shot up to yank away Nate's from him but then the hands were gone and Nate was flying across the classroom. When Kid sat upright again Black Star's face was near his own, green eyes searching his golden ones frantically.

"You okay?" His tone low, voice urgent, Kid could only find enough sense to nod stupidly, wincing as Black Star's gentle, prodding fingers hit something on his scalp that stung.

* * *

><p>When Black Star's fingers came back red his nostrils flared, a gaze of pure fury meeting one of smug contempt. Then Black Star schooled his features, showing no emotion as he quickly pushed a gentle hand through his friend's hair then stepped up on one of the curved desks. His steps were measured, quick, shoes tapping dangerously in the otherwise silent room . Nathan's face continued to pale as he saw the blank look on the other meister's face, looking around frantically for a way out. Hopping down from the desk Black Star stride forward, a well-placed knee to the gut leaving the blonde whimpering and bent over. Black Star grabbed his shirt, tossing him down the steps to the floor of the classroom. There was a cracking noise and Nathan moaned, holding a hand to his chest. Walking down those stairs slowly Black Star finally hauled him up by his collar, dragging him toward the door. He stopped, fist clutching tighter around the asshole's shirt.<p>

"Stein," he said, voice strained, "we're going to have to skip the rest of your class. _Nathan_ and I," he snarled the name, shaking the idiot roughly, "have to have a nice long chat about appropriate ways to interact with my friends." Stein waved him off uncaringly.

"Just don't kill him. I really hate doing paperwork."


	17. Conspiracy Theories and Cuddling (Safe)

It wasn't much of a surprise to anyone in the class when only a few minutes later Kilik breezed in, taking Black Star's things while Kid grabbed his own and then escorted Kid back out while a note fluttered onto Stein's desk. Kid followed Kilik down the hall blindly, stumbling once at which point he clutched onto Kilik's shirt and closed his eyes. He had never felt that... Vulnerable before. No, that was a lie. He had, but with Black Star and in a completely different way. That's who he needed now, Black Star, to hold him and kiss him and make him feel safe.

That was the eighth sign the shinigami was falling for the assassin.

"C'mon, Kid," Kilik said, opening the door of the clinic for him. Kid walked in a daze, eyes registering Maka before he all but collapsed against her. She rubbed his back and stroked his hair, murmuring quietly in his ear.

* * *

><p>Kilik watched on in confusion, settling himself down in a chair as Kid stayed slumped against the female meister. What the hell was going on here? Were those two dating?<p>

* * *

><p>"Have you learned your lesson?" Black Star spat, kicking Nathan up and against a wall; another crack exploded through the air. The blonde sobbed as he fell to the ground and flinched away from the approaching footsteps. Black Star squatted down, brushing a thumb along a bruise before hauling back and punching him in the face again. The blonde howled and the assassin chuckled, a gleam in his star-shaped pupils.<p>

"You," he hissed out, "do _not_ touch what is mine. My friends, my family, the _love of my life_... You don't touch them, you don't talk to them, you don't even fucking look or breathe in their direction unless you want me to _break **every** bone_ in your body next time. Clear?"

"C-Clear," Nate choked out. With a final grim nod, he picked the blonde up despite his crying protests and dropped him down the many stairs that led up to Shibusen. The stars in his pupils faded away, leaving guilty satisfaction in them as he trudged back inside.

That incident was the seventh warning Black Star needed to end this between him and Kid.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later Black Star walked into the infirmary, expression dark as he looked from Kid to the nurse. Kilik settled back in his chair, eyebrow raised only slightly in interest.<p>

"Why haven't you cleaned up his head y-?" The bluenette was cut off by Kid latching onto him and burying his face in a tan shoulder. The taller caught him easily, one arm underneath his backside and the other stroking his hair while Black Star murmured against it, finally getting Kid to nod but hold him tighter. The assassin's eyes returned to the nurse who had a raised eyebrow and a smug grin as he leered back at her.

"There's a piece of shit vaguely resembling a human on the steps that I found. You might want to check on it before it dies. I strongly recommend calling an ambulance beforehand," he offered while her face morphed into something filled with horror as she shot out of the room. Immediately the bluenette turned his attention back to his friend... Who was clearly more than a friend, Kilik realized pretty quickly. Black Star was murmuring again but this time he had lifted Kid's chin and pressed their foreheads together as he continued saying soft things to soothe the other, he assumed. Black Star carried him out of the room, closing a door. Kilik waited until he heard water running, then turned his gaze to Maka.

"... What just happened?" His voice was slow and Maka giggled for a moment before her face turned serious.

"Ahm... Well you can't tell anyone," she said, as if it hadn't been obvious. "They're not... Dating per se, but they aren't sleeping together- not in the figurative sense, anyway, they do actually sleep in the same bed a lot, uh..." She shook her head. "They're Friends With Benefits minus the sex, I guess." Looking away, she shrugged while Kilik raised an eyebrow again.

"Ah-hm. That didn't look like... Friends With Benefits, not at all." Maka sighed, dropping her head into her hands.

"Did I forget to mention the part where they're madly in love?" She asked exasperatedly, giving a rueful smile. "Neither really seems to realize it." Thinking about this for awhile, Kilik finally nodded.

"Makes sense. I won't tell a soul." A corner of her mouth twitched up.

"Let's hope you don't tell a living, breathing person either."

* * *

><p>The story shot around Shibusen quickly, so quickly that as soon as Maka and Kilik's conversation was over Liz and Patty burst through the clinic doors.<p>

"Where is he, huh? I'm gonna beat him up!" Liz declared furiously.

"Huh?" was Maka's oh-so-smart reply. Her brows were furrowed as she stared forward at the eldest Thompson sister in confusion.

"Black Star! Don't you know he beat up Kid for harassing Nathan?!" Maka's hand was introduced painfully to her own face. The swiftness with which things spread clearly had nothing to do with the accuracy of said story. Kilik snorted, yanking the sister by the wrist to sit next to him. Patty giggled, plopping beside her and swinging her legs.

"That's definitely not how it went down, dumbass," Kilik responded scornfully, unaffected by the furious gaze she turned on him. "Honestly, if you had any sense in that pretty little brain of yours you'd know that Nathan harassed Kid which in turn caused Black Star to beat the ever-loving shit out of that idiot." Kilik rolled his eyes, adding another "Dumbass" for good measure. Liz was staring at him furiously.

"Do you wanna die?!" She demanded while reaching out (to throttle him, Maka decided) and only stopping when the door the other two meisters were behind opened. Kid was passed out, head resting on Black Star's shoulder blade, the bluenette's hands supporting his friend's thighs as he gave the other a piggy-back. Kid's hair looked freshly washed, fluffy despite being combed. The teen walked over to the exit as the other four stood up, stopping and looking at Liz.

"I'm staying over tonight." His tone was dark, leaving no room for argument. Patty cheered, clapping and jumping up and down.

"Sleep-o-ver~! Sleep-o-ver~!" Patty chanted, latching onto Liz's arm. The bluenette's face softened and he reached out an arm to pat her head with a small smile.

"Black Star," Kid grumbled. Everyone's attention turned to him.

"Yeah, Kiddo?" He asked quietly. The shinigami thumped him lazily on the chest and pressed his face into the assassin's neck.

"Bring me home, idiot," he mumbled sleepily. "I hate the smell of hospitals." No one missed the look of pure, unadulterated _affection_ the striped meister was given in return to his comment except the recipient himself. Nodding, Black Star picked up their bags as he chuckled.

"Sure thing, Kiddo."

* * *

><p>No one was more surprised than Kid that night. All he and the bluenette did was... Cuddle, with a few comforting kisses placed where Nathan had practically gored his scalp. Black Star had been pissed, but he had focused on steadying his shaking hands so as not to hurt his lover while he cleaned the wounds carefully, whispering words of comfort. Kid had appreciated all the attention, still did now if he were to be honest. He liked the cuddling. A lot. It made him feel safe, made him feel wanted.<p>

It wasn't surprising that he slipped into sleep easily, but it was the ninth sign that Kid was falling in love with his blue-haired friend.

* * *

><p>For hours after Kid fell asleep the bluenette stayed awake, thinking over his actions that day. He'd slipped into madness, he knew that, but he wasn't sure why. Thinking back, he was positive that was what had happened to Kid as well. It had to be because of that dumb blonde, he decided, provoking them and provoking them, there had to be a reason. He was a bad guy, consumed with madness and it was rubbing off on them!<p>

... That was a little far-fetched, he decided, as things had been relatively quiet these past three years. Why now, why some asshole guy they met at a pet store Maka had been meaning to go to for months who happened to be Soul's cousin that he'd mysteriously never mentioned before, had never stood out at Shibusen and also seemed to have some fixation with the members of Spartoi... No, he liked bullying them all, harassing them, except for Maka. He blatantly stated that he wanted Maka. And after he got beaten up, he was always mysteriously healed, which was a property of the black blood, right? But no, his blood was red... Bright red, almost _too_ red. Red enough to be _fake_. He'd never really been afraid of any of them until today, either. He'd never physically provoked them... Until today. Narrowing his eyes, Black Star adjusted his hold on his friend-turned-lover, kissing his forehead gently and settling in to sleep. Conspiracy theories could wait until morning. Now he just allowed himself to be lulled to sleep by the soft puffs of warm air on his chest and the fact that Kid was wrapped around him, pressing closer even in sleep.

That was the eighth warning that Black Star needed to end this. He was letting himself hope.


	18. Flinch (Twins)

"The next morning, as I'm sure you remember, was hectic," Kid said monotonously. They were getting closer to the end of the story, and he didn't want that. Not at all.

...

Liz did remember, in fact. Usual mornings at Gallows Manor were peaceful and quiet, but this one was far from it. Kid and Black Star hadn't gotten up until the last possible second and were scrambling to get ready. _Serves them right_, Liz thought darkly as she opened the door, being met with Black Star hopping around on one leg to try and shimmy his shorts on, toothbrush hanging out of his mouth.

"Is that my toothbrush?!" The shinigami demanded from the bathroom doorway, wearing only slacks with his arms folded across his bare... _bruised chest? _And torso, neck and shoulders...

"Kid!" The eldest sister called on instinct, hands over her mouth in horror. "What happened to you?!" Kid let out a small, strangled noise in the back of his throat, wide eyes mirroring the horror in Liz's. Black Star rolled his eyes, buttoning his shorts and talking around the toothbrush.

"He fell down the stairs at Shibusen, Liz. It happened a couple weeks ago." Liz was sated by that answer and left, not really registering that some of the 'bruises' were brand new, looking purple, red and irritated, almost.

* * *

><p>Once Liz was gone Black Star rolled his eyes, walking over to Kid and ruffling his hair on his way to the bathroom.<p>

"Seriously, is that my toothbrush?"

"Maybe. After all the other things we've done with our mouths, this shouldn't be a big deal-"

"-it's a big deal because of the things we've done with our mouths-!" Rolling his eyes, the bluenette grabbed Kids hips and pinned them to the wall, proceeding to lean down and shut him up in the best way he knew how.

* * *

><p>Black Star came into the kitchen first. He filled a mug with water and stuck it into the microwave then tossed a couple of tea bags down on the counter carelessly. Liz watched as he pulled out a pan and sprayed it, sticking it on the stove to heat up while he grabbed two eggs from the fridge and cracked them into the pan. At this point Kid walked in, snatching the milk from the fridge and standing on tiptoes to get a cereal box from the top cupboard.<p>

"Don't burn my eggs," Kid said flatly. The assassin rolled his eyes.

"One time. One time and you won't let it go. Jesus, Kiddo." He narrowed his eyes in thought, taking the mug from the beeping microwave and setting the tea bags to steep while he grabbed a plate from above Kid's head. His front was pressed firmly against the shorter male's back. They seemed awfully comfortable with each other, Liz noted wryly. The blue haired meister slipped the eggs on a plate, dumping three spoons of sugar in the tea. He brought the tea and eggs to the table, sliding them in front of Kid's seat; Kid handed him his cereal and they both dug in, not noticing in the slightest the bemused looks Liz was shooting them.

* * *

><p>"Is it weird that Kid and Black Star make breakfast for each other?" It was later that day at lunchtime and Liz was sitting with their friends, minus the two in question (who were working on some project for a class, apparently). Soul blinked at her, Patty giggled and Tsubaki looked thoughtful.<p>

"What do you mean?" Tsubaki asked finally, cocking her head.

"Like... They know exactly how the other takes their breakfast and just... Make it, without the other asking." Everyone was quiet for a moment; Liz noticed Maka poking at her food with a small smile on her face.

"What's got you so happy, huh?" Liz asked, grinning and poking Maka in the forehead. "Huh? Huh?" Maka laughed lightly, swatting her away.

"I have a date," she admitted quietly, small smile still gracing her face. Liz was about to (smugly) congratulate Soul for finally growing some balls but his head looked in his meisters direction so quickly that Liz 1) was surprised he didn't have whiplash and 2) had the sinking feeling he hadn't even known.

"Date? With who?" He asked sharply. Maka jumped, looking up at him with wide eyes.

"Erm- your cousin..." She answered feebly. Soul reeled back, as if he'd been hit.

"Nathan?!" Liz hissed out. Tsubaki's eyes were wide as Maka blanched.

"N-No! Of c-"

"No," Soul responded quietly, eyes dark and tone dangerous. "His brother, right? The good twin?" He spat out the last part sarcastically, reaching out to no doubt shake her by the shoulders. She flinched away and Soul watched with wide eyes, swallowing and bringing his hand to his side. Liz saw it clench into a fist.

"Right. Well," he bit out, tone clipped. "If that's the way it is now, then I'll be leaving." He stood up, his tray clattering to the floor uselessly as he left. Maka continued to poke at her food, looking thoroughly chastised while Liz wondered just what the hell was going on.

* * *

><p>"Star," Kid mewled out, fingernails digging into his lover's shoulders as the bluenette rutted against him.<p>

"Kid," he breathed in response, using the convenient placement of his hands on his friend's ass to press them closer together. Placing his lips at Kid's ear he whispered huskily.

"Six days, Kiddo. Decided what you want yet?" Kid moaned, pushing his hips into the other's more forcefully because goddamn if it didn't turn him on when the taller spoke like that.

"N- No," he said feebly, tightening his grip around the blue haired meister's neck and guiding their lips together. They stayed like that, rocking together, panting and making out until with a barely audible whimper, Kid came.

"Star," he whispered, eyes closed with their foreheads pressed together while his counterpart continued to rut against him. "Star, Star, Star. Fuck, that feels good," Kid continued quietly, moaning in that ear as he nibbled on it. "Fuck. Fuck, _Star,_" he whined, moving a hand down to jerk the other off. Kid had barely pumped his hand once when Black Star jerked in his hand and came messily over them, their seed mixing together. Kid hummed, rubbing Black Star's back while the taller rested his forehead on the wall Kid was pressed against. The shinigami took the opportunity to press his nose into his lover's neck, breathing in the clean scent mixed with sweat. He'd breathe that in all day if he could. He hummed again, kissing the tan neck all over.

"You... That..." Black Star seemed at a loss for words. Kid smiled against his neck, biting the flesh teasingly.

"I thought you'd like it if I said something like that," Kid admitted, almost sheepishly. "And, well... You always do make me feel pretty damn good." The bluenette wiped the cheeky grin off his face by practically devouring the mouth it belonged to.

"Ah huh. You know..." The shorter grinned, wiggling his bottom half against the other. "We should probably get cleaned up. Lunch'll be over soon." Black Star groaned, letting out a displeased whine.

"Ngh."

"My sentiments exactly, but it must be done," Kid said seriously, placing a last, lingering kiss on the lips in front of him.

* * *

><p>The two were soon cleaned up and left the classroom. They were about to head to their next class early when Black Star heard voices down the hall. Kid seemed to have noticed too, so they walked silently down said hall and peeked around the corner. Soul stood there with a brunette who's arms were wrapped around himself with his back to the two meisters.<p>

"I- I swear to god Soul, I tried. You know I did, I even used a wig and contacts! I called myself Nathan to scare her away so when he did come around she'd slam the door in his face!" The brunette was tugging at his hair.

"James, I know, okay? Stop beating yourself up; we just need to find a way to keep him away from her." James laughed darkly and chills ran up Black Star's spine because that was the voice of _Nathan_. But... He was talking about someone else right? There was a Nathan and a James... and this was... Nathan/James?

"That's the beauty of his plan, Soul. She's not going to believe you if you say he's dangerous, because he's already told her that you've been lying to her about me the whole time." Soul pushed a hand through his hair in frustration.

"She flinched away from me at lunch today." James stilled, then reached out a hand to pat his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Soul," he muttered. Soul shrugged, hands dropping to his sides.

"Yeah, I'm sorry too. For punching you, that is. I really did think you were Nathan." James shrugged weakly.

"Well, that's what I was going for." Soul smiled half-heartedly, reaching out to fuss with the younger boy's shirt collar. "You're like the older brother I never had, Soul." Soul 'tch'ed.

"Yeah, yeah." A pause, and then, "Thank you for going against Nathan to help me."

"Of course. Us weapons have to stick together, right?"

"Well, I haven't really gathered what the hell is going on here, but I want in," Black Star announced, rounding the corner and crossing his arms. Kid came up behind him, latching onto his arm and leaning on him because he was too short to rest his chin on the other's shoulder.

"I do, as well," Kid said crisply, his eyes just daring the other two to argue. They all blinked at each other for a moment, Soul blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

"Are you two dating?" Soul gestured at them. Kid raised an eyebrow.

"No." His tone left no room for speculation. As a completely unrelated afterthought, he nodded at James. "Sorry for breaking your nose. I think." The brunette nodded back, pointing at the appendage.

"This time was Soul's fault, remember," he joked, trying to lighten the dark mood. "At least the broken noses taught me a lesson I'll never forget: never mess with someone else's things, even if you're pretending to be your douchey twin brother."

"Now," Black Star rumbled, cracking his knuckles to get off the subject. "Just _who_ is messing with my little sister?"


	19. That One Kate Nash CD (Denial)

"Three days later," Kid muttered, "I asked Maka and Kilik to help me with something, so we all met up at that ice cream place everyone likes so much." He couldn't be bothered with saying the name of the place, regardless of the fact it would have been easier. More words equaled the end further away, which was good.

* * *

><p>Kid sat in the ice cream parlor, trying not to show how nervous he felt. His chair was in the corner of the room, the small circular table and other two chairs directly across from him. Kilik came in first, ordering something before plopping himself in the chair on the left. He flashed an easygoing grin.<p>

"Hey, Kid."

"Hi." They waited a couple more minutes in awkward silence, Kilik's grin continuing to widen the more Kid fidgeted, until Kilik's order was in front of him at which point Maka stepped in and looked around curiously until she spotted the other two meisters, waving and seating herself on the right.

"Hey, Kid!"

"Maka." They all sat there for a few more minutes; Kid cleared his throat and steepled his hands under his chin.

"I have a problem," he started coolly. They both nodded, urging him to continue. "I'm sure you both know my birthday is soon." More nodding. "Soon as in three days." They both gave him stares that clearly stated 'cut to the fucking chase'. Clearing his throat, he avoided their gazes and looked particularly hard at a stain on the table vaguely resembling a Russian lady.

"... Black Star keeps asking me what I want for my birthday. My response is that I don't care, but that's... Less than truthful." He didn't miss the knowing gaze Kilik sent Maka as Kid sighed quietly. "... I want... To, ah..." This was possibly the most difficult thing he'd ever done. Somehow it didn't matter if he lost his cool or came apart or even cried in front of Black Star. He was just Black Star and Kid was just Kid. It was so, so easy. Drawing courage from that he looked up at them with only a faint flush to his cheeks, hands folded in the table in front of them, voice cool and in control.

"I want to have sex with Black Star on my birthday. Because of that, I did some research and I came across some interesting things. I've read that when you're taking someone's virginity it has to be special. Considering both of us are- virgins, that is- and it's also going to be my birthday, I agree: it needs to be special. Unfortunately, I'm awful at these sorts of things, so I've asked you here to hopefully enlist your help in planning that night." Kid finished talking, feeling a little awkward after saying all that. However, Kilik was nodding slowly and Maka's eyes were shining.

"Candles," she said immediately, taking out a notepad and pen from her purse. "You'll need candles." Kilik snorted.

"Yeah, maybe if they were dating, but they aren't."

"Candles will help set the mood!"

"Yeah, and probably give Star the wrong idea." Kid's eyebrow twitched.

"Don't call him that." Kilik blinked again and looked over at him questioningly.

"Sorry?"

"Don't call him Star." He chewed the inside of his cheek before adding, "Please." Kilik nodded slowly, brows furrowed as he turned to Maka and hesitantly told her to keep the candles on the list.

* * *

><p>Kid squinted his eyes at the list as he pushed his cart around the store. Candles; check. Condoms; check. That one Kate Nash CD; check. Boy you're about to run into; wait, shit shit shi-<p>

"Sorry, James," Kid grumbled, reaching down and hauling the askew boy back up. He was rather scrawny, really; from what Kid had heard of Black Star's beating on the actual Nathan, James wouldn't have stood a chance. And he always wore sweater-vests. And he was openly gay. Poor kid, he got picked on all the time.

"S'alright, Kid, whatya up to?" He asked, jumping up and grabbing the list before Kid could pull it back.

"'Kid and Black Star's Necessities for the Big Night: Candles, condoms, that one Kate Nash CD, lube...'" James grinned widely, giving the list back to a flushing Kid. "So you and your boyfriend are finally gonna have sex, huh?" Kid flushed brighter.

"Don't talk so loud!" Kid hissed. "And he's not my boyfriend! We're just..." He trailed off, forehead wrinkled in thought.

"Just..?" James prompted and Kid hated the soft, knowing look on the younger boy's face.

"Just," he said gruffly, "... Friends."

"... Friends, right." The brunette snorted, falling into step with Kid as he went to get lube, cart rattling. "Friends who kiss just because they can, who beat people up for even looking at the other."

"Friends." Kid's teeth were grit.

"Yeah, who've been involved in a mutually beneficial sexual relationship for at least two months without actually having sex. Who hold each other when they're scared, even in public."

"Leave it, James. We're just friends, alright?" Kid said harshly, looking at a note on his list and sweeping two bottles of lubricant into his cart.

"Friends who're in love with each other, maybe." The list fluttered out of Kid's hand, the older boy standing in shock for a moment before eyes filled with... Something met James'.

"You _shut up,_" Kid spat, pointer finger stabbing into the frailer boy's chest. "Don't you ever say something like that again." Still fuming, Kid kicked the list under a shelf and pushed the cart away, trembling. He ignored the fact that the good twin was still trailing after him. He was not in love with Black Star. That was... Impossible. Irrational. Yes, impossible and irrational. They were just friends. Black Star's hair was too blue and his mood too spontaneous. Eyes too green and hands too soft. Arms too gentle, lips too enticing and it was far, far too easy to fall asleep and feel safe when the assassin was around. Friends... They were just friends.

That was the ninth sign Kid was falling in love with his 'just friend'.

* * *

><p>"Just what," a voice murmured, bending down and snatching up the list Kid had kicked, "is this, hm?" Blue eyes widening the voice chuckled softly, hugging it to himself before folding it and sticking it in his pocket. "I can definitely use this." He grinned luxuriously, arms stretching over his head. He'd ruin the blue haired faggot.<p> 


	20. The Big Night (Hallelujah)

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KID(DO)!" The well-wishes rang throughout the room and in true form Kid smirked as he blew out his candles. The entirety of Spartoi, Lord Death, Stein, Marie, James (though many didn't really know who he was), Spirit even, were gathered in the manor to celebrate Kid's 17th birthday.

"What'd you wish for, Kid? Huh? Huh?" Liz was punching his arm playfully.

"Yeah, Kiddo, what'd you wish for?" Kid turned in his seat, arm resting on the chair's back as he stretched out a long leg and crossed it over the other with a coy smile on his face.

"Wouldn't_ you_ like to know," he drawled almost provocatively, their eyes meeting in an intense stare. It was such of blatant display of flirting that some stood rather shocked, others coughing into their hands uncomfortably. Kilik even nudged Maka and whispered,

"Somebody's getting laid tonight." She giggled, putting her hands over her mouth to stifle the sound while Soul looked over moodily.

"Let's eat cake~!" Lord Death announced, breaking the strange trance the room had been in. Lord Death cut the cake (no one mentioned his unconventional use of Spirit) while Liz handed out the pieces and Patty scooped ice cream, Kid protesting the entire time that he could help. After cake the adults left ("Protection, everyone~!" "FATHER. LEAVE.") on some mission (Kid suspected they had really just come for free cake) while the teens settled down in the living room so Kid could open his pile of presents. Black Star sat on the back of the couch directly behind Kid, who subtly (not-so-subtly if you asked some people) leant back on him, the assassin playing with his hair as per usual. About halfway through the gifts Kid was handed Black Star's. It felt rather heavy and it was bulky, awkward, misshapen. He gave the bluenette a quizzical look. The assassin rolled his eyes.

"Open it, idiot."

"You said if I didn't say what I wanted for my birthday you'd get me something embarrassing. I'm a little bit wary." Black Star rolled his eyes, nudging Kid's back.

"Just open iiiit," he whined. "I promise it's not a dildo, if that's what you're thinking; I told you I was saving that idea for someone else's birthday. It's really nothing embarrassing, promise," he said sincerely, the others still trying to figure out who the dildo would be for (and why, exactly). Kid scowled, but then turned to the gift and unwrapped it precisely. When he finished, he blinked slowly at the thing concealed to the others by his raised knees.

"You... Got me a giant bag of candy?" He asked uncertainly. The bluenette shrugged, looking sheepish.

"Yeah... I mean you're always eating candy when we all hang out, sometimes in class too, because you crunch on it and it's pretty much the most infuriating thing in the world and you always have to have three spoons of sugar in your tea otherwise you think it's too bitter, but one spoonful is enough for everyone else and you always demand extra chocolate chips in your pancakes on Saturdays-" Black Star cut himself off once he realised he was rambling, face flushing as he scratched the back of his neck. "I just figured you must have a sweet tooth."

That was the ninth sign Black Star needed to end this. He was noticing too much, getting careless in who he allowed to realize that.

"I..." Kid's voice died out, a warm and fuzzy feeling in his chest. Not even Liz or Pretty had realized that about him. "I, uh... I do. Really like sweets, that is," he said choppily, turning around to look at Black Star and patting his knee awkwardly. He wanted to jump the other meister and was rather disappointed it wasn't an option. "Thank you," he said quietly, eyes searching his friend's. "It was thoughtful. And nice that you noticed... I appreciate the effort even after I was so difficult." Black Star's only response was to ruffle the shinigami's hair.

"Yeah, yeah. _You're_ the one being a sap now. Keep opening your presents, huh?" Kid attempted to hide the grin on his face but only managed to tone it down as he leaned obviously against the assassin's legs, said assassin carding his hands through his lover's hair and smiling as well. The last present opened was Maka's. It was a box with holes in it, something making shuffling noises.

"Do not. Shake. The box," Maka warned. Kid held his hands up in surrender before carefully taking the cover off. A startled meow filled the room and Kid stared down at a white kitten with a black star on its forehead. He smiled, scooping the kitten into his hands as it mewled at him again, eyes closed and mouth open wide. Black Star bent down, chin resting on Kid's shoulder and reaching an arm around to pet the kitten behind the ears.

"You're gonna name it after me, right, Kiddo?" He joked, scratching the kitten under the chin while it purred violently in the shinigami's hands.

"Why would he do that?" Patty asked curiously and the two meisters jumped. They had forgotten they weren't alone. Maka giggled.

"Oh, uh," Kid said, turning the kitten around so the others could see. There was a chorus of laughter, Kid shrugging.

"I thought it would be ironic," Maka offered, prompting James to roll his eyes.

"Ah-huh." Maka shot a glare at him that wasn't missed by Kid.

"Anyway," he said hastily. "I don't know what to name it."

"I'm telling you, Black Star," the bluenette said again, grinning and taking the kitten from Kid to pet it gently, cooing.

"It's a girl," Maka added helpfully. "Oh! Almost forgot, oops. Liz helped me pick out her things and put them in your bathroom."

* * *

><p>"Ah... Little, then," Kid decided, scratching Little's tummy and smiling up at Black Star. The bluenette smiled back, tucking a strand of black hair behind a pale ear.<p>

"Little it is," the assassin murmured, depositing the kitten in Kid's lap before standing up and stretching. He knew what Kid was referring to, that dumb kids' song: 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star.'

"I'm gonna go home, since you-all are going clubbing," Black Star said, faking a yawn. "It sounds boring." Kid suppressed a smile, hugging his new kitten close and lying down on the couch.

"Kiddo? You alright?" Black Star asked immediately, stepping over and putting a hand on his forehead.

"M'fin-"

"Fuck that, you're burning up," Black Star hissed, sitting down next to Kid and setting the kitten in his own lap while pushing Kid's hair from his forehead. "You're saying home," he demanded, petting the kitten absently.

"What? No! I want to go!" Kid protested, sitting up before lying back down, trying to look woozy.

"Kid..." Liz said quietly. "You should probably stay home. I'll stay with you, if you want..." He sighed, arms crossed and a slight pout on his lips.

"No. You go. I'll just go to bed," he grumbled.

"It's for your birthday, th-" Kim started uncertainly, only to be cut off.

"So? You should still all go and have fun, right?" Kid asked grumpily. Black Star nearly laughed at how cute and disgruntled he looked, hoping the rest would assume it was because the shinigami was sick.

"Let's just go, Blondie," Kilik said finally. "Black Star will take care of Kid." Despite her protests, he slung an arm around her and practically shoved them both through the door. Everyone else followed, some hesitant and some not. When the door finally closed Kid sat up on his knees and pulled his friend into a kiss. His hands rested on each side of the bluenette's face, thumbs rubbing his cheeks as they kissed slowly.

"You are so fucking sweet," Kid murmured against his mouth. "It's not even fair. How did you even know all that stuff?"

"I pay attention," Black Star responded while the kitten jumped from the couch to explore. He pulled the other into his lap to kiss him better, fingers sifting through that black hair. "God, it took too long to get you alone," he gasped out, pressing their mouths against each other with bruising force.

"Agreed," Kid mumbled, hands sliding under the assassin's shirt to touch tan skin. The taller pulled away, pressing their foreheads together.

"Happy birthday," Black Star whispered, pulling the shorter in for another sweet kiss.

"Black Star," Kid uttered, kissing him again. "I lied when I said I didn't know what I wanted for my birthday." Another kiss. The bluenette whined.

"You should've told me! I would've gotten it," Black Star grumbled crossly. "My present was dumb, wasn't it?" Kid laughed softly, pecking his friend on the nose.

"That's not what I meant... I love the candy, really. It was sweet, no pun intended." He took a deep breath and another kiss. "I... Want to have sex," Kid muttered, adding for good measure: "With you." The blue haired meister stared at Kid, eyes widened.

* * *

><p>"I... Are you sure?" The words were filled with wonder and so were those green, green eyes that Kid could stare into for hours.<p>

"... Yeah," he replied softly. "But only if you want to." They shared a loaded look. Kid's heart was slamming in his chest and he was sure his lover could hear it but then those lips were on his and he let out a small sigh of happiness.

"It's gonna hurt, you know," Black Star choked out hoarsely. Kid kissed him again.

"I know, I did research, but... You always make it feel good, right?"

"K- Kiddo, I've never-"

"Shhhh. I didn't mean it like that, I'm sorry. I don't... Want you to feel pressured into this-"

"I don't."

"-_or _that I'm pressuring you to... Make it perfect and painless or something like that. I... I know it's going to hurt, but I don't really care. Because... Well, you're always making me feel good and don't let me return the favor a lot, so I... Want to do this. For you. And because regardless of what you think, you'll make it feel good for me, too. You always do." Black Star stared with wide eyes again before he shook his head slowly. Kid was crushed almost immediately, dragging his eyes down to stare moodily at their laps until-

"You're amazing," the bluenette breathed, reaching forward and tugging his lover closer. "Fucking amazing." Their lips met, Kid feeling slightly confused but going with it. "Fuck, just- fuck. Yes. Let's have sex." Kid felt a thrill go through him, heart thrumming in his chest again.

"Okay, stay... Stay here, okay?" Kid asked nervously, kissing Black Star before padding quickly to his room. He lit the candles, bathing the room in a soft, flickering glow. The box of condoms and lubricant stood on one nightstand. Kid put in the one-track CD that he'd borrowed from Kilik, as he had decided against that Kate Nash one. Pressing play, he smiled softly, closing his eyes as the piano music floated softly through the air. _Hallelujah_.

"Kiddo?" He turned around, stepping forward and kissing the assassin.

"I told you to wait." His hands were pushed through that soft blue hair while large hands settled at his hips.

"I'm not one for taking orders." The shinigami smiled up easily at his lover. The candlelight played across their features, softening angles and making eyes sparkle.

"I know." Kid led the bluenette by the hand to the bed, where he fell backwards with Black Star atop him as thunder boomed in the background.

"Are you sure?" The bluenette whispered, kissing his chin.

"So sure," Kid murmured back, hands cupping that tan neck and pulling him in for another kiss.

They undressed slowly between kisses. It took at least half an hour before they were both naked, at which point Kid rolled them over. The shorter meister continued to place soft kisses on those lips, nose, eyelids, everything. Lighting flashed and thunder boomed in the background, the rain pounding on the rooftop sounding like small patters to accompany the slow, bittersweet music.

"Kid," the taller male asked quietly. "_Are you sure?_"

"I'm sure, Star."

* * *

><p>Black Star reached blindly for the lubricant, dropping it with a small <em>thump<em> to the bed. He got up on his knees with Kid wrapped around him, all long legs and long arms and _God_ he didn't know how this beautiful boy could possibly want him of all people. Kid fell back to the bed on the pillows, face flushed from the heat in the room and hair wild, lips swollen from kissing and eyes half-lidded.

"Kid..." He muttered out, leaning down to capture those lips again.

"Star..."

Kid let out a small grunt as his friend began to stretch him, their eyes locking together and staying that way as the second and third fingers were gradually added. Slowly, hesitantly, the bluenette took the box of condoms, taking one out and rolling it on himself; then he took the lubricant and opened the top, squirting some into his palm and slicking himself up with a shudder. He took Kid's legs and placed them at his waist (he'd done some research, too).

"Kid... Are yo-"

"Star. I'm sure. I promise," Kid murmured, threading his fingers through that blue hair.

"Kid, I just want to make sure that you-"

"Star, please?" Kid whimpered. With that the assassin melted. His gaze softened and he cupped Kid's face with a hand, kissing his forehead, eyelids, nose, cheeks, chin and finally his lips.

"Okay, Kid," he soothed, kissing the pink-red lips one more. Thunder crashed again, the room flashing white. The bluenette took his own length in his hand, positioning himself at Kid's entrance. Kid scrambled to grab his lover's hand and laced their fingers together tightly. Bringing their hands up, Black Star kissed the back of Kid's then pressed forward slowly.

* * *

><p><em> And remember when I moved in you?<em>

_The Holy Dark was moving too_

_And every breath we drew was hallelujah?_

_Hallelujah; hallelujah. Hallelujah; hallelujah~_

* * *

><p>It had been slow, it had been excruciating, it had been sweet, it had been painful, it had been mind-blowing and Kid had loved every fucking second of it. Now the two were lying in Kid's bed; candles burning low, music playing softly while the storm raged outside. The kitten had found its way into Kid's room before even the boys had, so the fact that the door was shut and locked wasn't a problem. The shinigami's head was resting against the assassin's shoulder.<p>

"Kid?" The voice was barely a whisper.

"Mm." Then a small snicker.

"Your ass is gonna hurt tomorrow." Kid laughed, thumping him with a pillow.

"Good _night_, Star." The shorter turned around so they were spooning, backside pressed against the taller's flaccid shaft.

"Good night, Kid." A small kiss to the side of the shorter's head before arms were wrapped around that slender waist.

Both fell asleep with small smiles gracing their faces.

* * *

><p><span><em><strong>AN: I'm sorry this didn't come out as quick as the others! I wanted it to be just right (which it still isn't, but it's about as close as it'll come!). Thank you all for continuing to read! The last two chapters of part two will be out in the next couple of days.**_


	21. The Morning After (Present Day)

Black Star felt Kid shift in his arms, Little lying at their heads and purring madly. It didn't matter how the two fell asleep, they always awoke with Kid's head on his shoulder and his limbs usually wrapped around the bluenette in a death grip. A small whimper came from the bundle that was Death the Kid, almost drowned out by the still-raging morning storm.

"Kiddo?" He murmured.

"Staaaar," Kid moaned out, voice cracking as he clung tighter to his friend.

"What's wrong?" Black Star looked down, brushing some hair away from those gorgeous golden eyes that were looking at him in an almost accusatory manner, eyes bright with unshed wetness. "Oh, Kid, what's wrong? Did I do something? I'm sorry," he whispered, frowning as he cupped the shinigami's cheek.

"You didn't do anything _wrong_, you dickface!" Kid seethed, burying his face in the taller's shoulder. When he spoke again his voice was muffled. "My _ass_ hurts!" After a couple seconds the assassin burst out laughing, hugging the other closer to him when he tried to get away.

"I _told _you, you idiot," the bluenette murmured, lifting his chin up for a kiss while still chuckling. They kissed slowly, as was their usual morning pace. Black Star had his lover cuddled in his lap, holding him so he didn't have to move as the bluenette caressed his leg gently and kissed him with a hand cupped behind the shorter's neck.

"Mmphf..." Was the striped meister's only response, hands lazily rested on his friend's chest. He felt safe. He felt warm. He felt lo-

"You're cute," the blue haired meister muttered, pulling away and kissing his forehead. Kid smirked in response.

"So're you. Didn't I tell you you'd make me feel good?" Black Star chuckled.

"Yes, you did. You were right and I was wrong, as per usual," he teased. Both grinning, the shorter rested against the taller's chest. The bluenette caressed the other's skin, sometimes fiddling with his hair. They sat that way for almost an hour, enjoying each other's company; faces nuzzled, fingers entwined, kisses exchanged.

"Hey, Kiddo."

"Mm."

"You should let me take you on a date." Kid stilled and tensed, pulling away from his friend but staying in his lap.

"I'm sorry, what? Is that supposed to be a come-on?"

"I-"

"Because it fucking sucked." Kid snarled and removed himself from his friend's lap, keeping a blanket curled around his waist as he sat with his back to the bluenette. Black Star bristled.

"Seriously? This attitude again? Kid, we've been screwing around for what, almost two months?" The bluenette bit out.

"Yeah, _screwing around_, not dating you fucking _dumbass_," Kid responded quietly, coldly. He let out a chuckle that sounded hollow to them both. "What, did you think we were in love, or something?" The silence was deafening. "I think... I think you need to leave." The clench in Black Star's chest was the tenth sign that he needed to end this, leave. With a curt nod he got dressed and did exactly that, slamming Kid's bedroom door on the way out.

* * *

><p>Just as Kid turned around desperately to apologize, to beg the other to stay, forgive him, kiss him, something, his door slammed shut. The clench in Kid's chest was the tenth sign that he was falling in love with his blue-haired lover.<p>

Then, he fell.

The shinigami didn't quite know how to deal with all the emotions literally crushing him: desperation, regret, longing, love. He clutched a fist to his chest, shaking. He felt... Heavy.

Kid was in love with Black Star. He looked down at his hands which were now clenched, white knuckled, over pale, love-marked thighs. His eyes felt hot so he scowled, threw off the blanket and stormed into the kitchen, not caring he was naked. A note was on the counter.

_ Kid~_

_Patty, Maka, Tsubaki and I are going shopping. Tsubaki said Black Star didn't come home last night; do you know where he went?_

_Love,_

_Liz xoxo_

There was that word again. _Love_. Unconsciously he crumpled the note in his fist, glaring at the floor. Chucking it at an unknown corner of the room he forewent breakfast (_because Black Star made it better anyway) _for a shower. The shower didn't feel right, either (_because Black Star wasn't there_) so he stopped halfway through and got dressed instead. He swept the burnt down candles into a trash bag, hid the lubricant and condoms away, shoved Kilik's CD in a drawer and changed his bedding. Sitting down at his desk chair he slipped a new CD in and pressed play. Folding his hands across his stomach, he closed his eyes and laid back, making sure he had a good sized stack of books next to him.

* * *

><p>"What's wrong, Kid?" Liz demanded, busting into his room. Kid scowled.<p>

"Nothing's wrong," he muttered, bringing his eyes back to his book. Liz ripped it out of his hands as Patty peeked in. Kid's scowl deepened while Liz glared back at him, concern evident behind her rude expression.

"Kid, _you have Dean Martin blaring! _I'm not dumb! That's the whole reason I came in here!" Kid almost pouted. Couldn't he just keep it to himself? Why couldn't their shopping trip have been longer?

"Sit down, then," he hissed. "Both of you, because I won't tell this goddamn story twice."

* * *

><p>"And that," Kid murmured quietly. They had ended up back in his room with him curled under a big blanket, Patty sitting at the end of his bed with Little in her lap, and Liz stroking his hair. "Is how I royally fucked up what I had with Black Star. Can I go to sleep, now?"<p>

"I-"

"Liz, Kid's tired! Let's just let him sleep, huh?" Patty chirped, plopping Little down next to her meister and dragging her sister out.

"Hey, Patty, wa-!" The door shut and Kid continued to lay curled up. Tomorrow was Monday. Fuck. Little pressed her face up against his, purring and meowing for attention.

"Oh, Little," he choked out in a broken whisper, scratching behind her ears. "What did I do?"

* * *

><p>Black Star didn't know how he'd gotten here.<p>

No, that was a lie. He knew _exactly _how he'd gotten here. Another stupid bet. Another stupid bet _gone wrong._ The kicker was that it wasn't even a- a- a peculiar thing! Bets between him and Soul, him and Kid, went wrong all the time! Someone got physical, or someone got Maka Chopped, or someone got a bit embarrassed. This, though... This was different. He was _humiliated,_ disgusted even, that he had let the aftermath of some dumb bet drag on this long. It was sickening (or, as Soul would say, 'uncool'), the state he was in because of it. _He _had let it go on, _he _had instigated the whole thing, and now _he _had to pick up the pieces.

It wasn't behavior fit for surpassing the Gods, not that he worried about that stuff anymore.

_That stupid bet..._ He just wanted things to be normal again. Back to where he was pining from afar and Kid was oblivious and statuesque, with his dumb suits and cufflinks and that _one full stripe _of white in his hair that was a constant reminder to the assassin that _he _had played a part in bringing Kid closer to what he wanted- perfect symmetry- that _he _had saved Kid from that goddamn book, _he _had said he wanted to use his power to help Kid make his perfect world.

Now he knew, though. There was no 'perfect world'. There was only humiliation and heartache and _failure _with nothing to combat the stinging sensation of rejection, of defeat, of having your heart broken by a beautifully pale boy with golden eyes and an indifferent demeanor that only Black Star himself had been able to break.

A vision of that perfect boy moaning and writhing and _panting his name _as Black Star brought him to ecstasy flitted traitorously across his vision and his eyes snapped open, stinging for some reason. When he brought his hand up his fingers came back wet.

"Am I... Crying?" He whispered to himself incredulously. Clearly, he couldn't be left alone with his thoughts.

The sound of a door shutting made him look up.

"Black Star, I'm h-!" Tsubaki cut herself off as she saw her meister laying miserably on his side on the floor, wetness that was obviously tears staining his face. She dropped her shopping bags and fell to her knees beside him.

"Black Star, what's wrong?" She asked frantically, cupping his cheek in her hand, swiping away tears with a thumb. Black Star looked up at her pitifully, throwing himself into her lap as his shoulders shook.

"Tsubaki," he choked out. "... I fucked up..."

"Black Star," she said, rubbing his back in a comforting manner but speaking sternly. "You've been really weird and distant lately. I've never seen you this upset and I- I'm demanding answers!" She squeaked out the last part and Black Star squeezed her in response, lifting his head from where it was buried in her stomach.

"... It started with a bet," he began quietly, proceeding to tell her the whole sordid tale.

* * *

><p>"And that," Black Star murmured. They were in his room again, him curled up on his bed while Tsubaki sat in his desk chair, eyes shimmering with empathetic tears. "Is how I fucked up everything with the boy I love. I'm going to bed now." Rolling over and not giving her time to argue, he hunched into a ball. She patted his shoulder hesitantly before leaving, shutting the door behind her quietly.<p>

Black Star buried his face in his pillow, teeth clenched as he whimpered, then wept again.


	22. The Point of No Return (Polaris)

Kid scowled, shoving yet another handful of greasy potato chips into his mouth. Stupid Black Star, with his blue hair and green eyes and warm smile that could melt anyone's heart... Fuck him!

_You already have._

Well... Fuck. At the reality check Kid crumpled the now empty bag up and lobbed it across the room. Well, as far as it would go across the room. Grabbing another package from the small mountain of junk food next to his bed he tore it open and shoved a handful of roasted peanuts into his mouth, sugar granules falling on his bed and himself. He didn't need to eat per se, being a Death God and all, but it made him feel more... Human. Less distant from his friends.

_Black Star made you feel human._

He was embarrassed by the way he'd acted, some of the things he'd said.

_"Do what you want with me."_

_"Trust me, he's far from 'little'."_

_"**Mine.**"_

That last one... He shivered. That last one had been growled out the night of his seventeenth birthday. He'd been arching into his lover, fingernails leaving welts and drawing blood down the bluenette's back when he'd said it. He'd growled low in his Star's ear, meeting him thrust for thrust and it had just slipped out in the heat of the moment. He'd been terrified for a moment at what would happen; then Black Star had just nodded, responded with a barely choked back sob of arousal:

"_Yours. Only yours._"

Thinking back on it, Kid wanted to cry all over again, cry the same way he had when he heard the words.

Black Star, _his _Star, his _Polaris_, wasn't his anymore and... And that was his own fault. The worst part though... The worst part was that in the process of gaining Black Star and subsequently losing him, Kid had lost his own sense of self. What did he used to do all day when the bluenette wasn't around? What did he think about if not those locks of blue and orbs of green? How did he survive by himself when his very being was aching to be curled against a warm, tan body?

Kid had lost himself and he was nowhere to be found; he couldn't even use his Polaris to guide him back where-

_ Your Polaris guides you home. You know exactly where yours would lead you._

Yes, Kid supposed darkly with a twisted frown, he did know. He also knew it was not a place he was allowed to return to.

_** END PART TWO**_


	23. Old Habits Die Hard (Date?)

It took Tsubaki getting up two hours early, a giant breakfast and a threat to his well-being from his mild weapon to finally get Black Star to drag himself to school. Standing outside and staring moodily at the doors, the assassin came to a decision.

"Come on, Tsubaki! Your God doesn't have time to waste! Yahoo!" Tsubaki followed him, but she was troubled. Words like that hadn't come out of his mouth since the Book of Eibon incident. It couldn't have been a good sign.

* * *

><p>For Kid, all Liz had to remind him of was that he'd look weak if he couldn't even show his face to everyone. Appraising himself in the mirror, he nodded. These marks marring his skin would be gone in two, three weeks tops and then the bluenette would be out of his head. He was sure if it.<p>

Liz could only frown from the doorway, knowing where his thoughts must be.

* * *

><p>"I will surpass the Gods!" Black Star bellowed from his place on a cafeteria table, laughing. People were actually around him, not because they believed his words but because they hadn't heard them in so long. Wasn't the blue haired meister over this phase? "You will all bow down to me, the great Black Star!"<p>

"Surpass the Gods, huh? I doubt someone like you could do something like that." The bluenette's heart clenched at the sight of the shinigami leaning against the doorway, eyebrow raised and head resting on the wall, arms and legs crossed. The assassin laughed again, ignoring the sharp twisting in his chest.

"A big star like me will always beat a puny excuse for trash like you." There were some gasps at the words, murmurs at the looks between them. Hadn't they been getting along? Why the sudden hatred? It wasn't hatred through. Only hurt. So much hurt. Hurt that bubbled and boiled over easily, that constricted the chest and made it hard to breathe.

"Hah, yeah right." Kid pushed off from the wall and made his way over to stand in front of the table his former lover was stationed on. People parted before him wordlessly and Black Star jumped onto the bench with a clang. They were less than a foot apart now, Kid staring up with a fluttering heart and Black Star glaring down with an ache in his chest. "Really. You've never bested me before. Why would you be able to now, _Star_?" Kid felt bad, but he'd missed the name rolling off his tongue. And, he was hoping, maybe Black Star would respond with his name.

"Because," Black Star hissed out, fury in his eyes. "I won't let my emotions get in the way this time, Kiddo." Next thing he knew a foot had slammed into his chest and he was flying across the cafeteria. Back colliding painfully into the wall, head making a resounding smack, Kid looked up and was ready to charge but saw Black Star nowhere.

"Over here." Kid's head snapped over and he caught sight of the assassin by the door. He was standing in front of the exit with his head down and fists clenched. "You... You're puny. You're a coward. You're weak. And most importantly, _Kid_, you aren't worth my time."

Swallowing painfully at the words, Kid curled his legs up to him and dropped his pounding head into his hands with a small whimper. People were watching but he didn't care. It hurt too much, his chest was going to bust open, he knew it.

"Kid? You alright?" That was James' voice (though a little rough) and at his question Kid's shoulders sagged. "I'll take that as a no. C'mon." Kid allowed himself to be led away from the scene. "Night between you and th- you and your boyfriend not go so well?"

"He's not my fucking boyfriend, James."

"Right, right..." Kid swallowed, hands still over his face. Hands that were shaking.

"Fuck- James, I- I fucked up." James blinked owlishly at him. "I..." He sunk to the floor again in the deserted hallway, the story pouring out of him. It was like now that he'd told it once it couldn't be contained. This time, though, he cried harder than before while James pressed up next to him and murmured soothing words. Kid didn't notice that James was acting a little too familiar with him for the stage of friendship they were at. Kid didn't notice that the eyes were too dark, the hair too light, the body too built. Kid didn't notice the self satisfied smirk on James' face, or that the brunette plucked something from his back pocket- the photo strip he had foolishly crammed there upon seeing it that morning.

Kid didn't notice that "James'" eyebrows were blonde or the way he traced Maka's face possessively.

* * *

><p>"Well, let's go on a date then," Nathan said off handedly, trying desperately to imitate his brother's voice. This could still work. "That way you can get back at him for being such a dick."<p>

"But he-"

"Went into the arrangement knowing you didn't have feelings for him, right? He can't blame this on you, Kid." He watched the pale boy swallow and felt a bit of disappointment. He was so pretty, why couldn't he just be a girl? Reaching out a hand he brushed a tear away with a thumb. "Stop crying. You look better when you're happy." It made him a little angry that the shinigami didn't flush, only turned away and scooted into his own space. Nathan was charming, Goddammit, whether you were a boy or a girl! Then he remembered that he was pretending to be James right now so he supposed it was okay.

"Yeah... Whatever," Kid finally murmured. "Let's go on this fake date. Can't hurt anything." Nathan pondered the absolute lack of drive in the words. This was what "love" could reduce someone to? He was glad he wasn't capable of it, then. It seemed dangerous, even more so than Madness. A faint smile crossed his lips. Ah, Madness. The closest thing he'd had to a friend. And he lived conveniently in Nathan's own head! He had it way better off than these pathetic people and their "love". Love drove you to madness, he knew. Madness was the lesser of the two evils. Madness made the games fun to play.

"Okay, good. Friday, then. Make sure you mention it as often as possible, it'll make him more angry."

"Mm." Settling back, Nathan unconsciously curled his arm tighter around the other boy. Yes, Madness made games fun to play.

Good thing, because the game had just begun.

* * *

><p><span><em><strong>AN: What's this? An update earlier than anticipated?! Writing KidStar drabbles got my creative juices flowing, so I'm setting up the next plot point straight away, as I'm sure you see... As per usual, updates will be irregular. Oh! Originally I thought this was going to be a four part story, eleven chapters per part, but I'm pretty sure that with what I want to do it may even be a six part story... We'll see. Thank you all for your reviews, follows, favorites and support! It makes me really glad. Happy reading! **_


	24. Forced Apologies (Backstory)

"What was_ that?_" Kim hissed, watching with narrowed eyes as James led a shaking Kid out of the cafeteria.

"I..." Kilik was at a loss for words. What _was _that?

"Do you think something happened over the weekend? Neither of them were here Monday... A fight on Kid's birthday, maybe? Tsubaki said she couldn't find Black Star the next morning. C'mon, we gotta get to class." Kilik, bewildered, allowed himself to be dragged by Kim. There were murmurs all around them about what'd just happened and he tried to listen, he did, but... Well fuck, something must've gone wrong with the sex. They'd both been so into each other, though. That couldn't...

"Do you have _any_ idea what's going on?" Maka hissed, sliding up next to him with Soul at her side.

"Star was God rambling, Kid said he'd never be able to become one, Star kicked him across the room and followed it up by saying Kid wasn't worth his time then... Kid curled up in a ball and cried, basically." Those few words couldn't begin to describe the tension in that room, but Maka caught on.

"That night..?" She asked softly. Soul was listening intently but Kim was chattering away. Kilik sighed.

"That's what I'm thinking, yeah."

"The girls will know something. If Kid's crying in public then who knows what's going on at the manor and Black Star hasn't mentioned anything about surpassing the Gods since the Book of Eibon incident..." Kilik shrugged Kim off (she didn't even notice) and turned to follow Maka to Stein's class. When they walked in their eyes were immediately drawn to where Kid and... _James?!_ were holding hands, James wiping away his tears tenderly.

"There's something wrong here..." Soul muttered, stumbling forward as someone practically fell through the door. On further inspection it was Hiro and he was gazing up in shock at the focal point of the room, Kid and James.

"He..." Hiro whispered out. Kilik rolled his eyes.

"See? We told you Kid and Black Star weren't dating. Get up. You're making a fool of yourself," Kilik told him harshly, stumbling back with the force of the glare Hiro shot at him, eyes filled with genuine hurt.

"You don't understand a goddamn thing," he snapped, voice bubbling with hysteria. "James- he's not supposed-" shooting one last desperate look up to the pair he tore out of the room, breath shaky.

"That was..."

"Hiro. Very Hiro and very uncool."

"You two are idiots."

Boisterous laughter was heard from the hallway and the room went silent, eyes widening in anticipation. Kilik was fairly sure people would get whiplash if they didn't quit looking between Kid and the door. Kid seemed oblivious, lost in his own thoughts while James' gaze hardened, eyes narrowed to slits as they stared at the door. Turning slightly Kilik saw Black Star walk in with an arm slung around Tsubaki's neck in what was essentially a chokehold.

"Your God has arri-!" Black Star cut off immediately, arm falling limpy at his side. His mouth was parted slightly, eyes wide as he stared up at the meister and weapon. Finally, he barked out a short, hollow laugh.

"I guess that fucker was right. You are a fag." The words made Kid recoil as if slapped, the only reaction anyone had seen from him since the cafeteria incident. Maka brought her hands to her mouth to try and stifle her gasp as the words rang around the room. Kid cleared his throat and stood up. He flashed an irritated and somewhat confused glance at his and James' hands, shaking them apart easily and crossing both of his own under his arms as he appraised Black Star coolly. Kilik noted the irritation in James' face at being ignored. That wasn't how the boy had acted at Kid's party, not at all.

"Yes, well. Takes one to know one, as they say. As it so happens, I have an absolutely _fabulous _gaydar and seem to be looking at the biggest cock lover in the world." Tsubaki was flushed red and Black Star's mouth was set in a furious line.

"You staring at a mirror, then?"

"I'd hope not, all I can see is that _ungodly_ mop of blue."

"At least my hair isn't boring, two-stripe."

"No, it's just a rat's nest."

"Easier to get your fingers tangled in during sex." Black Star's words were said indifferently and met with a few snickers. Kid made a strangled noise in the back of his throat before pressing forward just as Liz and Patty walked into the room, the latter giggling and clapping her hands.

"Who would want to have sex with _you_?"

"You, apparently, considering how big of a fag you are."

"Thinking about fucking me, _Star_? Bad habits for someone supposedly straight."

"Wouldn't dream of it, _Kid_. I never said I was straight."

"You're gay, then."

"Nah. I just love the people I love." A pause, voice softening. "Not that you'd know anything about love, huh, Kiddo?" Then the room was so deathly quiet that Kilik didn't even dare to breathe, only sifted his fingers through Liz's long stands of hair as Kid and Black Star's gazes locked, eyes stormy.

"Why aren't you doing anything?" He murmured oh-so-quietly, delighting in the shiver she gave.

"They... They need to get it out. You don't really understand the extent of the shit that went on between them." They fell silent again.

"No," Kid said finally. His posture was straight, his arms unfolded, chin up, face disdainful. "I wouldn't know anything about love. You're right. Love, if it even _exists,"_ his voice was absolutely savage, "is pointless. It only makes you do stupid things like jump in front of a bullet, or, as my own favorite example, sleep with someone who's only using you for physical gain." Black Star's sharp intake of breath make Kilik feel for the guy, but Kid was lying. Kid had come to him and Maka, had asked them how to make him and Star's first time special together.

"That's _enough_," Liz snarled, stepping away from Kilik and stalking toward the steps. She stomped up them to Kid (who was staring at her stubbornly) and gripped his ear in her fingers. He let out a cry of surprised protest but she dragged him down to the ground level a few feet from his adversary.

* * *

><p>"Apologize," she commanded, squeezing his ear for emphasis and getting a grunt in response.<p>

"No."

"Death the Kid. _Apologize right now._ Those words, all of them, were entirely unnecessary."

"You're not my mo-!"

"I don't care! I may as well be! _Apologize_!" There was a pause while Kid glared at the wall behind the bluenette. He didn't move his gaze as he spoke stonily.

"Sorry."

* * *

><p>Black Star blinked in response, not sure how to react until he felt a pain in his lower back. Turning around, he shot a glare at his weapon.<p>

"Ow, Tsubaki!"

"Black Star, you accept that apology and give one of your own. Now." While Liz's voice had been loud and stern, Tsubaki's was low and promised great pain if he didn't obey.

"Apologyacceptedsorryiguess," he rushed out, glaring at the ceiling with his fists clenched. Then, as if on cue the two weapons pushed their meisters toward each other, chorusing,

"Now kiss and make up."

* * *

><p>Kilik grinned as Liz flounced toward where he was sitting, Tsubaki following while the two boys yelled and cursed, trying to untangle themselves from each other like they were burnt every time they touched. Which, Kilik supposed, probably wasn't too far off of an observation.<p>

"You are one amazing woman, Blondie," he said lowly, fingers brushing down the length of her arm as she flopped down next to him in a huff. She smiled a little though, bumping their shoulders together.

"Thanks." The boys finally got away from each other and shot apart, scrambling. Kid zipped back up next to James (who's face flashed in irritation again when his arm was shrugged off Kid's shoulders) and sulked visibly while Tsubaki herded Star up to seats far, far away from the other meister then returned to sit with the others. Patty, Soul and Maka soon joined them, Liz speaking quietly.

"Basically, the morning after they had sex Black Star asked Kid on a date. Kid got scared, freaked out and said some harsh things, so Black Star left." She paused, seeming to debate something before sighing.

"Why scared?" The question came from Tsubaki.

"I... Well, the idiot didn't realize it 'til Black Star actually left, but..." She let out a noise of frustration, allowing her head to loll back as she closed her eyes. "Kid's head over heels for that guy." There was a small silence where no one knew what to say.

"Star's been in love with him for three years, you know," Soul ventured, hands behind his head and get on his desk. He was staring at the ceiling thoughtfully. "It was the Book of Eibon incident that did it."

"That was when he stopped comparing himself to the Gods," Maka murmured.

"Yeah, that's... He came to me about a week after, said he didn't know what to do. He wasn't noticing girls the way he used to, he couldn't even get hard looking at a magazine or something. I told him he was probably gay, as a joke, but he took it seriously and said that he didn't notice guys that way either, just Kid. Only Kid." The other five were practically hanging on his words. "That kinda surprised me, I'll admit it. Then we started actually talking about it and it... It made sense. Kid almost became a monster in there and Black Star saved him from it. They saved each other, really. Kid said he wanted to make the world perfectly symmetrical and Star, ah, said he wanted the ultimate power so he could help Kid do that. Make his perfect world." The girls 'aww'd at that and Kilik had to chuckle.

"We were fourteen and Black Star told me that after all that, he was in love and he wanted it to go away because it was completely fucking up his view on things. I laughed, told him he should just tell Kid how he felt or something cheesy like that but Star... He was afraid of losing him. Kid. Said he didn't even care if Kid found a nice girl to marry and live his life, so long as he was happy and Star could still see it. It was unconditional love, probably still is now, so I sat him down and had an even more ridiculously serious talk with him.

"'Star,' I said, 'when you love someone you've got to really love them, really mean it. And if you want to be in a relationship, they've got to mean it too, or someone is going to get hurt.' He looked at me then, nodded, didn't even try to interrupt. So I kept going, told him, 'Think of it like this. When you're in a relationship, it isn't always about you. It's about the other person, too. It kind of like... You have to treat them like your God, of sorts. Like they're one of the most precious things in the world to you. And if they love you back, they'll treat you the same. It'll keep things pretty equal. If they don't treat you like that, they're not with your time. Don't hold on to something that hurts you.' After that we sat there for a few minutes and then just burst out laughing, seemingly brushing it off. The next day, though, he stopped with the God stuff, so I knew he took it to heart." They all stayed quiet, contemplating the information. Maka leaned over and pinched Soul's cheeks.

"You're so cute when you get all serious," she crooned. He batted her hands away, flushing.

"Oi! Enough of that," he complained.

"You know, I think he still takes your words to heart. I'm assuming you heard about their fight this morning." Soul nodded to Kilik. "When Star left, he told Kid that Kid wasn't worth his time." Not for the first time that morning they fell quiet, staying that way until Stein rolled in and the chair wheel caught on the door.


	25. Revelations (Kill)

"That can't be James," Soul murmured finally. It was about halfway through class and all he had done the entire time was stare at the pair.

"What do you mean?" Maka asked quietly.

"The way he's acting. That's... Maka, that's Nathan, not James."

"Be quiet!" Maka hissed, shooting looks at the rest. "What are you talking about?"

"Maka, look. He's constantly touching him, making moves on him. It's _weird_. James wouldn't do that. James wants things to work between Star and Kid." The meister eyed him skeptically. When she said nothing, her weapon continued. "Isn't it weird that Nathan hasn't been around? James didn't act like this at Kid's party, either. There is something wrong here, Maka."

"I..." Maka swallowed, watching them for a couple of seconds. James-possibly-Nathan leaned out to murmur something in Kid's ear. Kid shook his head, shifting uncomfortably as James-possibly-Nathan's hand disappeared under the table. Not five seconds after the shinigami started violently, knees hitting the bottom of the table and head slamming into the desk behind him. Kid let out a small whimper.

"P- Professor Stein, I'm going to the infirmary," Kid said quickly, in a high voice, before stumbling out of his row and shooting out the door.

"That's... That's not James," Maka whisper-choked, eyes wide. Had Nathan just..?

* * *

><p>Black Star watched the pair with clenched fists, breath irregular, angry. Kid was his. <em>His<em>. That was _his Kiddo_ and James had no fucking right to be touching him that way. When James' hand disappeared underneath their table, the bluenette's breath caught in his throat. When Kid reacted, the assassin's gaze went dark. When Kid left because of it, he made his decision.

The bell finally rang and the bluenette made a beeline for the door, shrugging off his weapon with a dangerous sounding "Leave me be, Tsubaki." He didn't try to hide that he was following James, who was blatantly making his way to the infirmary. He stepped in and the assassin slipped through the door behind him before it closed. They both waited in the lobby area of the clinic for at least ten minutes, long after the bell rang, James seemingly oblivious to the bluenette's presence.

* * *

><p>"Where've Kid and James gone?" Maka whispered as class started.<p>

"For that matter," Tsubaki added fretfully, "Black Star." Maka and Soul shared a look of alarm.

* * *

><p>Kid walked out of the nurse's office into the lobby, shakily adjusting his sleeves. Looking up, he froze; James was standing there. Swallowing, he shrunk into himself. James had... No, that wasn't okay. He was touching Kid constantly and it felt <em>wrong<em>. It felt dirty. Then, he'd had the audacity to grab Kid between the legs after he'd just told the brunette to stop touching him... Kid's heart was in his throat. Had he misjudged James completely? He'd helped them convince Maka about Nathan, but that could have just been duty to Soul... Who had a lot of shady friends... And now, they were in the infirmary. The receptionist was out to lunch, the nurse's actual office had sound proof walls and doors and Kid was alone with James.

"You alright?" he asked, not sounding too concerned.

"J- Just a bump. On my head. I'll be fine."

"Good, let's go, then." James took a step forward and Kid stumbled back a step.

"I- I can go by myself. You go first." The shinigami's eyes were wide and he took another step back.

"Kid, what the fuck?" James looked pissed, mouth set in a scowl as he walked towards Kid. Kid clenched his teeth, continuing to back up until he was against the wall. "What the fuck is up with you. You're acting ridiculous."

"I don't like the way you're talking to him," someone said dangerously, coldly. Despite the tone of voice, relief (and a pang of longing) flooded through him. Black Star. James turned around with a sneer. Slowly, deliberately, he ran a hand through his hair. The mop of brown slid off his head to the floor, revealing a head of blonde. Kid was confused until he spoke.

"Well, if it isn't the blue haired _fag_ protecting his little boyfriend." Kid tried to scramble back further but he was already in the corner. The shinigami watched as Nathan pinched the colored contacts out of his eyes, tossing them to the floor carelessly. "Didn't you two break up? This isn't your business anymore."

"Kid will always be my business." A jolt of happiness made Kid warm. He'd missed hearing things like that.

"Mm... Sorry. You can't have Daddy's little fag. I'm not done playing with him." The assassin's eyes narrowed.

"You have five seconds to get out of this room. Five, fo-"

"Sorry?"

"-ree, two, one... I warned you, dumbass."

* * *

><p>Kid walked with his head down, staying quiet. He wished Black Star would say something, but what was there to say?<p>

"Black Star..." The assassin let out a grunt. "He... He touched me. I thought he was James. I let him touch me. I didn't even realize. He-"

"Stop talking." Kid looked behind him. The bluenette was trembling, hands clenched. His hands were bloodied, a show of what he'd do to protect Kid. What he'd done to protect Kid. "Just... Stop. Please. If I keep listening to this I'm going to go back and kill him. I don't want to do that, even to someone like him." Swallowing, Kid nodded and turned back around jerkily, walking the same way.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, but he didn't think the other heard him.

* * *

><p>Maka breathed a small sigh of relief when Kid walked through the door of the classroom but tensed up when Black Star followed directly after. There was blood on the bluenette's clenched hands and Nathan was nowhere to be found. After depositing Kid next to Liz he sat on the shinigami's other side, leaning over to glare at the weapon.<p>

"If you ever," he hissed quietly, "let Nathan _anywhere_ near Kid again, it won't be his blood that's on my hands." Liz's eyes were nearly bulged out of her head.

"Are you threatening me?" She demanded, scowl on her face.

"Yes. I am. Your meister was practically just molested in the middle of class because you weren't taking care of him. _Take care of him._" His unsaid words were implied: "Take care of him so that I don't have to." With that said he stood up, jumping down a couple of rows and sagging against his weapon.

"Tsubaki," Maka heard him mumble, "make these feelings go away. They hurt too much."

* * *

><p><span><em><strong>AN: Sorry for taking a few days! I got my rats this weekend and have been preparing for them. They're so cute, aaah! Hope you like this one, it did NOT go the way I planned originally but I like it just as well. The entirety of part three is going to be condensed over the next six days in the story because a lot of shit is going to go down. Happy reading!**_


	26. The Plot Thickens (No Obligations)

**_A/N: First of all, this chapter is grossly short for the amount of time it's taken to write. Sorry! Second, there was a review from a Guest requesting more SoMa. This is mainly a KidStar fic, with minor references to other pairings for the sake of the story making more sense. If you want to check out my profile and the stories listed there, you will find that I have two more stories that I've mentioned in the 'At Sixes and Sevens' description to ruin parallel to this one (titled, respectively, 'At Sea' and 'At A Loss'). One is mainly SoMa, the other mainly KiLiz. Reading both once they come out will allow all three to make more sense by filling in major plot holes and the like. They should all be one story, really, but there'd be too much going on. I can't develop multiple relationships and foil evil twins all at the same time, you know... Happy reading and thanks for all the reviews, follows and favorites!_**

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><p>The next morning found Liz walking quickly down the hallway toward her meister's room in slippered feet while rubbing sleepy eyes and hoping like hell that Kilik had enough sense to stay in her room if he woke up. They were planning on staying home that day anyway. She loved her meister, she did, but everything around him was crazy right now and she didn't want to be involved with all of that. A voice whispered in her mind that the thought was selfish and she tramped it down. She had a right to be happy sometimes, too! She was so tired of taking care of everyone all the time!<p>

She was walking toward his door with a feeling of dread, the muffled noises from within growing louder the closer she got. Raising an eyebrow, she opened the door to find Kid kneeling on the floor and bawling, rocking back and forth. He was clutching a... She bit back the urge to scream. He was sitting on the floor sobbing, rocking and holding a fucking _sock_ to his chest. Scowling and then sighing, she relaxed her face and plopped next to him.

"Kid, let go of the sock."

"I- I found it under the beeeeeeeeeed!" He wailed, curling in on himself. Liz raised her eyes to the ceiling. She may have been sick of taking care of everyone... _But_. She sighed again. He was her best friend and she hated to see him hurt. So she sucked it up, heaved yet another sigh and pulled him to her. He collapsed in her lap, blubbering- over a _sock_- and she rubbed his back sympathetically.

Once the debacle was over she sent Patty and Kid off to school with instructions to Patty that she was to give the sock to Tsubaki. With a relieved sigh she crawled back into bed with her now-awake somewhat-boyfriend, smiling happily as he pressed a kiss to her hairline.

"How's Kid?" He murmured, causing her good mood to shatter as she sneered and pulled away from him.

* * *

><p>"Is that all anyone cares about?!" She exploded, twisting the blanket in her fingers violently. Kilik stared at her in wide-eyed shock, propped up on his elbows. "Fucking hell! Kid this, Kid that, all the time! It's so fucking <em>annoying<em>!" She sneered again. "Oh, Kilik, are you a fag too? Is that why you're so worried about Kid?" He swallowed. Something was wrong here.

"Liz... Blondie, why do you feel that way?" She furrowed her brows, hands clenching the blanket tighter.

"Because... Because, he..." She put a hand to her forehead, eyes squeezed shut tight. "He's a fag?" She whispered, then shook her head. "No. No, I don't care about that. Why am I angry about that?" She let out a whimper and Kilik wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she thought.

"I... I don't feel that way. Someone else does." She looked up at him desperately. "Kilik..." He took in a shaky breath at her implications.

"We'll... Stein. Stein will know what to do..." He trailed off as he saw the look on her face- wide grin, dilated pupils, cocked head.

"My blood is black, now," she whispered gleefully. Kilik felt a sharp pain in his thigh; she had slit her own wrist without his notice which allowed her to use a blood spike. He suddenly felt ill at the crazed expression on his Blondie's face. No, not his Blondie. This wasn't her. This was a monster using her as a vessel. Now, he was fairly sure how and he was absolutely _furious_.

Nathan would pay for the shit he'd put Kilik's friends through. That bastard better get ready.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, promptly following it with an elbow to the gut and then a well-placed kick to the head that had her out instantly. He sighed in regret and laid her on the bed, confining her hands to the headboard with the handcuffs they'd used the night before and using a bed covering to secure her feet. She's be pissed if she woke up normal, but he couldn't take chances. Kissing her lightly on the forehead and adjusting her shirt for more modesty, he then turned and grabbed his cellphone. On the third ring it was picked up.

"What could you possibly want at this unholy hour?"

"You should be up anyway, Stein. You're a professor," Kilik responded tersely, then paused. "There's a situation."

"Is there, now?"

"Cut the shit, professor. It's Liz. She's become infected with Black Blood. She's unstable. She lashes out at me verbally regarding Kid. Says there's someone else in her head. I'm fairly sure this was Nathan- then again, isn't everything lately?" There was another pause.

"Isn't that curious," Stein murmured, almost to himself. "I'm assuming you're at the manor. I'll arrive in ten minutes." The line went dead and Kilik sat heavily, head in his hands as he dropped the cell with a thud.

"Whatever happened..." Kilik choked out some sort of noise. "Whatever happened," he tried again, whispering hoarsely, "I'm sorry I wasn't there to save you, Blondie. I should have been. You're never leaving my sight again." He pushed some hair off her cheek and cupped her chin gently, kissing her eyelids. "Ever."

* * *

><p>Black Star scowled halfheartedly as he trudged down the hall toward the Death Room where he'd been summoned. His shoulders were hunched but he hardly noticed as he scuffed his foot on the tiled floor. He had a sinking feeling this meeting was <em>not<em> going to be about a new mission. He could already tell this wouldn't be his day. When Patty and Kid had gotten to school, Patty had given Tsubaki one of Black Star's socks and exclaimed cheerfully that Kid had found it that morning. Kid had looked away stonily and Black Star had stared past the blonde girl's shoulder unseeingly.

After that little debacle, he hadn't been able to find Maka or even Soul to talk about it. They hadn't been in first or second period either, but the real James had and he'd looked weary beyond belief. Of course, seeing as Nathan had impersonated him (and apparently _held him captive_), James didn't know what was going on and Black Star felt the need to explain- only the basics, of course, like the fact that Kid was a no good heartbreaking bastard. Not that he used those words... (Maybe he'd been a tad bit dramatic.)

Now, here he was, strolling beneath _guillotines_ to meet with his ex-lover's father. Joy.

"Hey, hey, Black Star~!" Lord Death greeted cheerfully with a wide wave that showcased the ridiculous size of his hands. Spirit stood off to the side but that didn't make the assassin feel any better as to the nature of the meeting. Lord Death told him everything anyway.

"Lord Death." Black Star gave a curt nod, hands shoved deep in his pockets as he warily eyed the inexplicably bouncy Death.

"So it seems you and my Kiddo have broken up-"

"We were never dating."

"And neither of you seem happy about it so I need you to tell me what you did to mes-"

"Fuck you." Lord Death stilled from the twirling around the room he'd been doing and turned around slowly. Spirit sucked in a surprised breath but Black Star stared ahead defiantly

"Pardon?" Death's cheery voice had undertones of anger and bewilderment.

"I said fuck you. You just assume I did this, yeah? It didn't even cross your mind that maybe your precious Kid is to blame. Your son may be a perfectionist, Lord Death, but that in no way makes him perfect." Black Star was speaking tonelessly but he did let out a small puff of air that was probably a snort. "I bet you never even believed that Kid had something to do with us- that- ending."

"Well, even if it wasn't you, I still think you have an obligation to expl-"

"I don't have to explain shit to you. If you want to know how things ended, ask your son. I'm sure he'll delight in detailing how he tore me apart and how, even after that, I'm doing everything I can to protect him from a homophobic psychopath that you _refuse to get rid of or deal with_. Nathan is a fucking kishin egg waiting to happen. Call me crazy but I'm fairly fucking sure he has black blood. Do you understand how fucking dangerous he is? He's got this creepy obsession with Maka, he held his own brother captive so he could impersonate him and get closer to Kid. And then." Black Star leaned forward, eyes glittering dangerously and voice barely louder than a whisper. "He sexually assaulted him, right in the middle of class. He reached down and squeezed Kid between his legs, hard enough to bruise according to the nurse. I almost killed him. Nathan, that is." Spirit's face was troubled and Lord Death was unnaturally still.

"Why didn't you, then?" The voice was quiet and serious but Black Star shrugged carelessly in response.

"It's not your business. I've been honest enough with you today. Like I said, ask your precious son. Then you can both have a laugh together." Not bothering to wait for a dismissal the assassin hurried off.

"You know, he usually would have been angry," he heard Spirit say before the bluenette shut the door. He supposed, as he walked down the corridor, that yes. A couple of days ago, even yesterday, he would have gotten angry, screamed, shouted. Now, though, he was just tired. Tired and defeated. What was the point of taking care of Kid? The fuckhead wouldn't be grateful for it. He probably laughed with Liz all the time about him. He felt like his life had turned into a bad thriller show on TNT or something. There was a psychopath running around, his love life was in shambles and he was ready to give up on the only person he'd ever actually loved. Then again, that last part didn't sound like an altogether bad idea.

_That's it, then. I'll completely cut off from Kid and spare myself the heartache. I've lived life without him before. I can do it again._


	27. Deflowered and In Pieces (Spartoi)

_**A/N: Hey! Sorry for all the AN's lately, I'm like slipping out of my writing funk (noooooo) BUT I wanted to let you know something super important! I'm starting school soon... Like today man (online school wewt, had my first day AND got a chinchilla already the second best week of my life), so don't expect updates until later in the day, okay? I'M NOT GIVING UP ON THIS STORY (or any others, for that matter...). Seriously though, I've already written the last chapter! And it's fabulous, so now I just need to figure out how in the world to get there... There's a vague outline involving... Well, stuff. I think there'll be 45 chapters total, including the epilogue. Happy reading! (Please don't hate me for this chapter or it's shortness- I just really really wanna get it out! More tomorrow, I promise.)**_

* * *

><p>Black Star walked back to class as slowly as possible, milking every last second he could out of his time away from third period. Stein's class, the one class they all had together. His shoes scuffed on the floor and echoed through the hall as his mind bounced around his skull. He'd made the resolution to cut Kid off and ignore him, but with as much as Spartoi went on missions together and the fact that they had the same friend group, he'd have to do something even harder. He'd have to act like nothing had happened. Then, slowly, with time, Kid would remove himself from the equation and Black Star could avoid the awkwardness. Satisfied with his solution he turned the corner- and found Spartoi minus himself, Liz, Kilik and Maka waiting outside the entrance to Stein's class.<p>

"Soul? Dude, what the hell's going on?" The assassin reached them quickly, brows pulled together. Soul had bags under his eyes and he looked a mess- his clothes were rumpled, hair in disarray and _not_ the practiced mess of usual.

"I.. Maka. Maka's- Maka's gone," he said helplessly, pushing a hand through his hair. The bluenette froze, all eyes on them; their gazes suddenly felt intrusive. Yes, they were all Maka's friends as well, but... He'd known Maka since they were young and Soul was her _partner. _

"I..." Helplessly, the bluenette looked around and then yanked his best friend into a closet with him, shutting and locking the door before flipping the light switch.

"What do you mean 'gone'?" Black Star finally choked out. He could hardly breathe. Not Maka. Nothing bad can happen to Maka. Not his little sister.

"I woke up this morning... Room a mess... Window open..." Sound was fading in and out for the assassin as the weapon spoke in a hollow murmur. Black Star shut his eyes tightly and clenched his fists to his forehead as he leaned against the wall. He kept losing people; first Kid, now Maka-

_No. Not Kid. That didn't happen. You didn't lose him._ Nodding firmly he stood up, ears deciding to obey him just as Soul muttered:

"And there was... A drop of blood on the pillow... Black Blood. Do you think... Not Chrona, right..?" With a start, the assassin recalled his theory about Nathan having Black Blood. He swore loudly and slammed his fist against the wall. The wall broke and his hand started to bleed.

"Nathan, that little _shit._" Decisively, the bluenette snatched Soul's arm up again and slammed the closet open.

"I'm sick and tired of this little shit. He's been going after my friends to get at me because of something that happened months ago and I am fucking _sick of it. _Who fucking knows what that idiot Lord Death is doing- sorry, Kid- if he's doing anything _at all, _but I think it's time we took matters into our own hands. We're _Spartoi. _We take care of Kishins and Kishin Eggs and Kishins-To-Be. It's what we do and it's time we took care of Nathan."

* * *

><p>Gasps and exclamations broke out around Kid at Black Star's proclamation but the shinigami was rooted to the spot.<p>

_- sorry, Kid- _

He had said it so... Normally. Like things had been before. Like he and Kid were just friends. Like... Like...

Like nothing had ever happened between them. After the group broke off, Kid walked to his locker in a daze and spun the combination. He screwed it up twice before the thing finally opened, at which point a single piece of paper fluttered out. He bent down absent mindedly and picked it up, those words still in his head.

_- sorry, Kid-_

Once he read it though (it took him seven tries) his breath halted. It wasn't like he needed it anyway. Could he do this? Black Star had done so much for him-

_-sorry, Kid- _

-even since he'd done something horrible to him. Could he do this?

_- sorry, Kid-_

For the person he loved?

_-sorry, Kid- _

Standing up, face set indifferently, he allowed a small nod as he shoved the note in his pocket and strolled down the hallway. Yes, he could.

_-sorry, Kid-_

_I'm sorry to you too, Star._

* * *

><p><em>Daddy's Little Faggot,<em>

_You want the virgin back? Then we're still going on that date. See you Friday..._

_I mean, unless you want her to returned to you deflowered and in pieces._

_N_


	28. Battle Strategies (Puppet Master)

**_A/N: Forgot to mention this last chapter, but how did no one notice the handcuff thing in chapter 26?_**

* * *

><p>Black Star had fucked up.<p>

_-sorry, Kid-_

He'd never used to call him Kid. It was always Kiddo. He'd fucked up already, but he'd keep going. It was whatever. No one else had noticed, right? So he was still safe. Nothing had happened. He was _fine._ He had to be. He wouldn't think of black hair or golden eyes or pale skin... Not anymore. He didn't have the right to anyway.

* * *

><p>While the rest of Spartoi skipped out on classes and sat around a large table at that ice cream place everyone likes trying to think of places Nathan could have brought Maka, Kid just sat and thought quietly. What they were doing was pointless; it was Wednesday and by Friday Kid will have gotten her back. Maka was everyone's friend, but to Soul and his Polaris she was <em>special<em>, so Kid had to get her back. Losing something special was an awful thing, he knew. He didn't know what he'd do if Nathan targeted Liz or Patty next... Or Black Star. As his phone rang he stepped outside and answered, speaking quietly.

"Hello?"

_"Kid, hey, it's Kilik."_

"Kilik? Yeah, hey. If you're at Shibusen and looking for the rest of us, we're-"

_"No, Kid that's- that's not why I'm calling." _Slowly, Kid straightened his shoulders and clenched the hand in his pocket around the note from Nathan.

"Why are you, then?"

_"Maybe you noticed that Stein isn't at Shibusen today-" _he hadn't, actually, he'd never stepped foot in that class today- _"- and that's because he's at his house. With Liz and I... Liz, she..."_

"She what?" Kid demanded, fingers tightening around the device in his hand.

_"She... We think she has Black Blood." _Kid swore loudly and chucked the phone across the pavement, where it shattered to pieces. He flung open the door and walked over to the table, putting a gentle but firm hand on Patty's shoulder.

"Patty, we have to go." She tilted her head back and looked at him curiously, the rest of them doing the same.

"Huh? Why?" She cocked her head and placed her hand on his. He clenched his teeth and pursed his lips.

"Kilik called. It's Liz." Patty furrowed her eyebrows.

"Did they tie the knots too tight around the headboard again?" There was a scandalized gasp and a snort but he ignored them, shaking his head at the youngest Thompson and rubbing a circle on her shoulder-blade with his thumb.

"Patty, really, let's just go and I'll explain on the way, okay?" Patty nodded and stood up, confusion printed across her features.

"But... Where are we going?" The rest of them were listening, faces ranging from inconsequential worry to deep concern. Kid ground his teeth together, taking her wrist and tugging gently.

"... Stein's lab. Kilik will explain when we get there, okay?" Without waiting for a response he dragged her out and down the street.

* * *

><p>"What?" Black Star snapped, tilting his chair back on two legs. Soul raised a brow.<p>

"You know what." The bluenette huffed in response, chair legs slamming back on the floor with a clang.

"It's not my job to go after him. Furthermore, we don't need to. Something's wrong with Liz and he clearly doesn't want to talk about it. We need to focus on Maka right now." The assassin turned his attention back to the various sheets of paper lain out on the table.

"You seem to know how to read him well." Harvar almost never spoke, so Black Star had trouble recognizing who the voice belonged to.

"Him who?" He muttered back, preoccupied with narrowing his eyes at something and scratching it out.

"Kid. You seem to read him pretty well." The bluenette raised a single brow at that while Tsubaki nudged another piece of paper at him. He nodded absently to her.

"I don't think so," the assassin mumbled, scrambling to find the map of Shibusen that Kid had procured and placing a circle around the dungeons with a much smaller, darker circle around a specific cell. Soul leaned over and let out a grunt of approval. Black Star set the page down, resting his chin in his hands as he surveyed the strangely relaxed weapon across from him. "I read him just the same as any of our other friends. Really, anyone could have seen he didn't want to talk about it; he was holding something back that he didn't want us all to know." Soul coughed.

"He... Was?" Harvar snickered at that and the bluenette rolled his eyes. The doorbell jingled and he heard two sets of footsteps come to a rest behind his chair. One was James, he could tell by how they were confident but light. He didn't recognize the other but they must have been Hiro's, who'd been spending a lot of time with James that day. He bit back a smile as he realized his out.

"I'm an assassin. I've got to be pretty perceptive. Hello James, Hiro." He turned in his chair and shot the newcomers a smile. James just shook his head, tugging Hiro by their clasped hands to the pair of seats Kid and Patty had vacated.

"I still don't understand how you do that."

"The sound of your footsteps, actually. You walk easily, but it barely makes a sound because you weigh practically nothing." Black Star grinned and turned back to the papers. "And, well, Hiro's been with you a lot today so it was easy to figure that out."

"Ah. So today I walk into Stein's third period class. What do I find? Chaos. I find chaos. You lot are gone, Stein's nowhere to be seen and some pathetic substitute is standing at the front of the class trying to calm down fifty-plus students. I figure yeah, some badass shit must be going down, I should go find Star, maybe Kid. Where do I find you? Borborygm. That's where I find you. In an ice cream parlor with a REALLY. DUMB. NAME." James was**  
><strong>

"Everyone else just says 'that ice cream parlor everyone really likes'," Kim offered helpfully.

"Seriously, what the fuck is going on? And where the hell are the rest of you?" Hiro reached out to flick James' shoulder.

"Such _language,_ James. Really, calm down, okay?" The assassin noted their hands were still clasped and allowed himself an inner smile.

"Maka's missing," Soul choked out quietly. The bluenette clasped his shoulder and squeezed.

"Probably kidnapped," he added. "By Nathan. On this table you'll see a battle strategy slowly coming together." The two boys examined it curiously for a couple of moments before Hiro carefully extracted a layout of the city and spread it out.

"Why don't you have his house circled?" James asked in confusion. Black Star furrowed his brows.

"We _do_ have your house marked..."

"Yes, precisely; _my_ house. Do you really think I'd live with that psycho? Gimme a pencil." The brunette held out his hand and Jackie was the first to comply. Muttering to himself his eyes scanned the map, eyes widening and eyebrows pulling together after a few seconds. He quickly scratched a box around a large building. "I- Isn't this Kid's house?" He whispered hoarsely. Black Star felt his throat tighten at the tone and clenched his fists under the table to keep them from trembling.

"Yeah," the assassin muttered back. James shakily drew a dark circle around the building directly next to it.

"Th- This... Is Nathan's house."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Liz," Kid whispered softly, sitting down next to her delicately and taking her limp hand. Patty sat next to him and curled back into his arm; Kilik was seated in a chair next to the bed holding the sedated girl's other hand. Patty was crying, body shaking as Kid murmured to her and rested his chin on her head.<p>

"It's alright, Patty," he murmured. "Professor Stein will make her all better, okay?" When Kid and Patty had arrived half an hour earlier Stein had just been getting the test results back from the blood he'd extracted from Liz's arm. She didn't have Black Blood, not really; it had been diluted. The blood running through her was ninety percent water, leading Stein to believe it worked more as a way to control someone than anything else. That, of course, didn't assuage anyone's fears. Black Star must have been right; Nathan must have had Black Blood. The real question, though, was who the hell had given it to _him._

"K- Kid how are y- you so ca- calm?" Patty finally sobbed out.

_Because there's no one here in a state to comfort me if I break down._

"Because this is Liz," he replied quietly. "She pulls through everything, remember?" Patty seemed to accept that answer; soon, she and Kilik were both asleep. Kid stayed awake for hours as Stein came in at timed intervals to keep Liz under, fingers flexing with anxious energy. At around nine that night, Stein came in with a sour face, cell phone in hand.

"You have a call. Catch." Kid caught it easily, holding it to his ear.

"Hello?"

_"Kid! Jesus Christ, why aren't you answering your phone?" _Soul's voice was frantic in his ear.

"Sorry... I, er, kind of smashed it to bits earlier..." Soul let out a sigh.

_"We thought something bad happened to you, too. What's going on?"_ With a small sigh, Kid quietly began to tell Soul of Stein's findings, petting Patty's hair gently. When the call was finally over and he had flipped the phone shut in his hand he allowed himself just a second to wish it had been Black Star on the other end.


	29. Chrona (Ragnarok)

The cacophony of noise created by four sets of feet scuffing across uneven terrain echoed throughout the maze-like bowels of Shibusen. James, Hiro, Soul and Black Star were headed to see the one person the latter two _knew_ could help to get Maka back- Chrona. The bluenette frowned as he thought of what had befallen the pink-haired boy. Sometimes, it made him flinch.

For the past four years, Chrona had been imprisoned in his dungeon room in Shibusen. It wasn't out of cruelty; it was to keep everyone, including Chrona, safe. When Medusa had died... It had been hard on him. Yes, she was Medusa, but she was also his _mother_. After three months of him being in a dark, depressed state he'd finally snapped, even with Maka's full attention and care. An aura of madness had literally slammed from within him; Ragnarok had been yanked into him, Maka, Tsubaki, Kid and Soul been flung back into the walls from the force of it. Then the wide grin had appeared on Chrona's face and the demented laughing had begun, followed by a whisper.

"My blood is black, you know..."

Black Star knew both Maka and Tsubaki both still had nightmares about it and he would bet Soul and Kid did, too. Nowadays, the only times Chrona was lucid was when Maka was around. They were hoping her being in trouble would have the same effect.

"Where, exactly, did you say we were going again?" That was James, sounding confused.

"To see a guy named Chrona," Soul responded. Black Star noticed the misstep in James' gait before it smoothed out like nothing had happened. Some would play it off as him stumbling, but not the bluenette.

"Yeah, about yay high, pink hair, dark eyes, looks kinda girly?" He continued casually. James let out a grunt in response. So they knew each other. The foursome turned the corner and were hit with a choking aura of madness.

"Wh- What the h- hell?" Hiro gasped out, him and James leaning on each other heavily. The other males winced but bore through; this wasn't a new thing.

"You get used to it. Come on." Soul's voice was far from gruff, but it was strained. The four walked on together, the assassin stopping them directly underneath a wall sconce without its torch lit. He made sure they were all against the wall underneath it, facing the darkened cell before them.

"Chrona?" Black Star's voice was gentle but firm. There was maniacal giggling coming from the dark depths before arms were thrust through the bars and a face with a wide grin was pressed into them, hysterical laughter escaping those lips. James let out a small squeal, causing Chrona's gaze to flick to him. The laughter died down, the insane glint in his eyes but the mouth frowning.

"You didn't come to see me when mother died, you know."

"I- I know," James whispered, turning his head away into Hiro's shoulder and grasping blindly for his hand. Chrona's arms had fallen to his sides.

"I waited."

"I'm sorry..." Chrona let out another giggle.

"And then I went insane!" He spiraled into laughter again, twirling around before slumping on the ground and laying with his head facing them, tilted back so they could see that wide grin. The puzzle was slowly coming together for Black Star.

"Chrona..."

"You know that's not who I am, dear James." Black Star's eyebrows shot up at that tidbit, Soul giving a surprised intake of breath. James sighed shakily.

"I can hope..." James was standing straighter now. One fist was clenched, the other locked tightly with Hiro's. Chrona let out a high-pitched giggle an rolled over to rest his chin in his hands.

"Can you really though? There isn't any hope. There never has been, hm?"

"What the hell are you two going on about?" That was Soul; he sounded beyond pissed. James stayed quiet. "James, I'm fucking tal-"

"Soul, stop," the bluenette said, reaching out and holding his shoulder tightly. He turned his gaze to James thoughtfully, then nodded once. "James. You and Chrona are brothers, right?" James sputtered. Soul sputtered. Hiro blinked. Chrona laughed.

"What are you..." That was Soul. He sounded lost and hurt; the assassin knew that James and he had been friends for a couple of years (not cousins; he'd learned that when the three of them plus Kid had thwarted Nathan's first real attempt to get close to Maka).

"Chrona- or whoever the fuck that is- referred to Medusa as 'mother' when he was talking to James, not 'my mother'. It would explain how Nathan has Black Blood; James probably does too, but I'm sure he fights to keep it dormant, because James is cool and Nathan is _not._" Four sets of eyes turned to the blonde in the hall. After a moment Black Star gave Hiro a small round of applause while Chrona laughed maniacally and tapped his nose twice with a finger.

"Right on the nose! We have a winner!" Chrona was rolling around on the carpeted floor of the cell, laughing hysterically with abandon. Black Star sighed.

"We can talk about this all later, guys. There are more important things to deal with now." Black Star turned determinedly to the cell. "Chrona," he called loudly. "Maka's in trouble." The pressing madness left the air and the four took a deep breath, the torach flaring up behind them. Chrona was forced back into a wall and Black Star stepped forward, James and Soul giving small shouts. They all started when another body was thrown against the bars of the cell, groaning.

"Chrona," a voice whined. _Ragnarok's_ voice whined. Black Star was surprised; Ragnarok hadn't come out once since Chrona's first bout of madness. Then he noted the alarmed expression on Chrona's face and- Ragnarok wasn't there. Slowly, his eyes trailed to the naked body pressed back against the cell bars. "Move, will ya'?! This hurts!" The shoulders of the body tensed as the voice sounded; Black Star swore.

"I- I'm over here," Chrona whimpered, curling up into a ball again and wailing. "I don't know how to deal with this!" The body cocked its head.

"If you're over there... And I'm over here..." The body's head moved down, looking at its lap before bellowing loudly. "_Holy shit!"_

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><p><span><em><strong>AN: Sorrynotsorry~ Thank you for all of your lovely reviews! Some of them are becoming pretty funny and it makes me all warm and gooey inside. D'awe. People like what I do. If anyone wants to check it out, I posted dumb stuff on DeviantART. You can just put kwiluvu deviantart into whatever search engine you use and my page should pop up in the results! I warn you though, none of it is drawing or anything like that; I can't draw for shit (Can any of my lovely readers? I'm curious now. If you do I wanna check out some of it; let me know please!) but I CAN make dumb conversations with Comic Sans on pictures. Beautiful. Once again, thanks for all the reviews, follows and favorites! Happy reading!**_

_**PS: THREE UPDATES IN THREE DAYS. TAKE THAT. (Ignores the fact that I used to post three or four updates a day; remembers; sits in a corner and cries.)**_


	30. Jerimoth and Kenelm (Unite, Eliminate)

"Spirit."

"Lord Death?"

"... The children are coming very close to something I don't want them to know." Spirit swallowed. The Death Room was silent

"With all due respect, I think we need to be focusing on Maka right now-"

"Not if it's going to cause them to learn this truth." Immediately, Spirit pushed himself off of the wall.

"Sir, there's no way you can be se-!" The shinigami turned toward the Death Scythe, causing the latter to freeze. "Wh- What truth, sir?" Lord Death looked down and sighed.

"Kid's mother, she... Kid is related to those boys. James and Nathan." Spirit blinked, eyebrows pulled together in surprise.

"Sir... You're not being serious, right? You don't really mean that?"

"The boys are cousins, Spirit. You mustn't tell anyone of this... Even if..." He sighed and his head tilted down. "Even if it means Maka's life." Fury exploded inside of the Albarn at that; he had the urge to scream, to fight, to paint the room red with the blood of the person suggesting he give up his own precious daughter. The door slammed open before he could do any of that, revealing a bent-over Marie gasping for breath as if she'd been running.

"Lord Death, you need to come to the clinic right away-!" She gasped out. "James, Hiro, Black Star and Soul went to go see if they could enlist Chrona's help in freeing Maka and, well- Just come see!" She finished with a frantic yelp. As Spirit ran after her through the halls, he had the vague thought of:

_"How the hell did they get the key to that cell?"_

Then, though, he was in the clinic and Chrona was rocking in a ball in the corner with James trying to comfort him and Hiro stand awkwardly to the side. On further inspection he found a tall, muscular, seemingly naked teenage boy sitting against the wall in a hospital bed with the sheets pooled around his waist. A large scar in the shape of an X adorned his face, which was currently flickering between elated, disbelieving, terrified and concerned. Black Star stood against the wall, eyes narrowed and Soul sat on the floor with his head in his hands. The nurse came out, looking uncomfortable.

"This is really a job better suited for Mr. Stein," she muttered. "Though I am curious what caused the boy to transform from his original form..." The boy in the bed yelped in a manly way (Spirit wondered if that was even possible), and scrambled further against the wall.

"No way!" He boomed. "That guy'll try to _dissect _me or something!" Spirit felt for the kid, he really did.

"Now, now, nonsense!" Lord Death said cheerfully, clapping his hands together. "Who are you, young man?" The boy narrowed his eyes.

"I think you know who I am." There was a pause of uncomfortable silence before Lord Death shrugged.

"Well, I'll leave you all to it then~! Spirit, Marie!"

"I... Think I'll stay here, sir," Spirit said quietly as Marie walked toward the door. The shinigami had his back to them all.

"Very well, Spirit, but remember what I said~." Spirit's gaze hardened.

"I will." Once the two had left (followed by the nurse who had said something about "getting sick of Spartoi insanity") Spirit turned toward the kids, straddling a chair backwards and cocking his head at the black-haired boy in the bed.

"Who _are_ you, anyway?" The boy chuckled deeply in response, opening his mouth to speak; the assassin in the room interrupted him.

"You're just gonna report everything we say back to that self-righteous asshole, right? Why should we say anything to you, huh?!" Spirit raised a brow at the indignant bluenette.

"Black Star." His tone attracted the attention of everyone in the room; Chrona peeked out from under his arms and Soul lifted his gaze. "That 'self-righteous asshole' informed me just a little while ago that he's willing to risk my little girl's life just to keep a secret from Kid about his family. You really think I wanna tell him anything right now?" Soul sat up straighter, back against the wall and arms on his knees; his eyes were narrowed.

"He really said that, old man?" Spirit nodded curtly. "What secret is he talking about?" Spirit shrugged.

"You tell me what you know and I'll tell you what I know. _If_ I think it'll help get Maka back." Soul seemed to consider this.

"I think that's fair," Hiro offered from across the room. "I'd accept it, at least." Soul grimaced.

"He's right," Black Star said. It's fair."

"Fine. Before anything else, though," Soul's narrowed eyes turned to James, "I want an explanation. We've been friends what, three years? You didn't see it fit to tell me you had another brother?" This piqued Spirit's interest.

"I- Two. Two other brothers... Ragnarok was..."

"Human, once," Chrona murmured, arms wrapped around his knees and chin resting atop them. Ragnarok nodded, stretching his arms above his head, joints popping.

"Yeah... Mother was one crazy bitch." The bluenette in the room cocked his head.

"But... Medusa melted down a sword and put it inside Chrona, I thought." Ragnarok bared his teeth in an almost-smile, pointing at the scar on his face.

"She's a witch, remember? Asked me to turn into my weapon form and then she bound me that way with magic. _Then _she melted me down." His tone was pleasant, but everyone other than his two brothers were staring at him with mixtures of horror and pity on their faces. He shrugged. "Like I said. She was a crazy bitch. I'm glad she's dead." The words rang through the room; Spirit swallowed as things slowly came together for him.

"So... You," he pointed at James, "and you," Chrona, "and you," Ragnarok, "and Nathan are all brothers."

"Yeah."

"U- Um, yes..."

"Were you not listening to that story?" _Well, shit, that means Kid's mother was..._

"What I don't understand," Hiro said off-handedly, "is how James and Nathan got normal names."

"Jerimoth and Kenelm."

"Sorry?" Hiro started and looked down at the brunette who had spoken dryly.

"Jerimoth and Kenelm were our original names. Ragnarok, destroyer of Gods; Chrona, Dark One; Jerimoth, he that fears and rejects; and Kenelm, defender of the family. Mother had a twisted sense of humor. When Nathan- rather, Kenelm at the time- and I escaped after what she'd done to Chrona and Ragnarok, Nathan gave us new names. They still mean bad things, but..."

"They do?" That was Chrona, quietly.

"Kind of, yeah. Nathan means 'gift from God'. James means 'he who undermines or supplants'. Nathan picked them, so I'm not surprised... We were nine, but I think that's when the madness started to creep up on him. After what Mother had done... She was going to do that to him and I, you know. She injected us with the Black Blood from Chrona and Ragnarok in preparation for it. That's why Ragnarok made us leave. He's the oldest, always bossing us all around." He looked up at his brother, a mixture of pride and childish awe upon his face. "He wouldn't have turned out bad, even after what Mother had done, unless she made him."

"Why didn't you try to run with them?" Black Star looked truly curious as he addressed Ragnarok, who shrugged.

"She would have come after all of us and then we'd all be in trouble. I could take care of Chrona," a look of guilt crossed his face, "I clearly didn't do a good job of that-"

"Don't say that," Chrona mumbled, one cheek puffed out. Spirit was confused by the personality change but didn't question it; there would be time for that later. Well, maybe not... Wouldn't Chrona's madness return once Maka was safe? There were so many unanswered questions. Ragnarok looked startled for a moment before grinning at his pink-haired brother, who hid his face again.

"Anyway, I knew Kenelm could take care of Jerimoth- er, Nathan and James I mean- as well. I figured that we could take care of the littler ones. Chrona was the baby and Jer- James was sick a lot when we were younger since he was the twin who got less nourishment in the womb and stuff. That's why he's so tiny and huggable. And Ke- goddammit, _Nathan- _really took the meaning of his name seriously and stepped up to the plate when we were younger. The Black Blood took him over." The room was quiet for a minute or so.

"Chrona, who were we talking to in the dungeons?" Soul uttered, looking at him calculatingly. Chrona let out an 'eep' and James put a hand on his shoulder, sighing.

"That was Mania," James informed them all quietly. Spirit was lost, but he listened carefully nonetheless. "The Black Blood- it manifests as different... Personalities in each person. Chrona's is Mania; like the name implies, it forces him into a manic state when active. Mine is Aberration; it means abnormal, or different from expected, probably due to the fact it hasn't ever actually become active in me. Ragnarok's is Delusion; that explains why he acted so differently when he was sharing Chrona's body: he wanted to be the protective big brother, but he felt the way to do it was to egg Chrona on and do what Mother said. Soul, yours is..." James closed his eyes tightly for a moment before a breath was forcefully expelled from his chest. He winced before opening his now-bloodshot eyes. "Fuck, I hate that. Anyway, Soul, yours is Foolishness. I can't really explain that because I haven't seen it first-hand, but I'm sure you can understand it. And Nathan's... Nathan's is literally Madness; that's why he acts the way you've all seen. No regard for his own safety, always doing whatever he wants..." James let out a noise of frustration which made Hiro kneel down and grab his head gently, placing a firm kiss to James' temple.

"You have to understand," James said softly, looking up at Soul pleadingly, "I didn't tell you any of this because I didn't want to believe it'd get this bad... I hate that Kenelm has become Nathan. They're two entirely different people to me; Kenelm can't help how he is anymore. He's too far gone, and I hate it." He buried his face in his hands. "I really, really hate it..."

"Then we have to kill him." The three brothers looked up in shock from where Black Star had spoken coldly.

"You can't-!" James said passionately, standing up with clenched fists and glaring the assassin down.

"I can. And I will," the bluenette replied venomously. "I'm sick of his constant attacks on Maka and Kid and now even _Liz _because of some dumb fight that went down in a fucking pet store about him being a homophobic little asshole! He said he's doing this to get back at _me,_ which means _I _have to end the problem! I'm not going to allow him to just go on at leisure hurting my friends!" The room was silent for a moment before Ragnarok spoke quietly in a strange tone.

"Attacks on Kid?"

"_Yes_," Black Star spat; he was practically trembling with rage. Ragnarok was quiet. Everyone was quiet. Spirit stood up.

"This is the part where I step in, then," the man began firmly. "Lord Death informed me that I was not to tell anyone this, even at the risk of my precious little girl's life." Spirit chuckled darkly. "Like hell I'm going to risk my daughter's life for something you clearly all need to know, if he doesn't want you to." The Death Scythe wiped a hand down his face. "Kid's mother... Tch. Kid is the cousin of these boys." The room was quiet again until Black Star snorted.

"Some 'defender of family' Nathan is," he muttered. James let out a small gasp.

"Fuck," Ragnarok said. "Fuck. Fuckity fuck fuck _fucking _fuck."

"How could I not have noticed this before?!" James demanded, stomping his foot on the ground like a child.

"What are you talking about?" Soul questioned, standing up and leaning tensely against the wall. James let out a hard laugh.

"Defending the family means keeping it together, right? Kid forgot about us. Arachne- She did something really bad. It traumatized Kid so bad that his mind blocked it out; it blocked out the entire first six years of his life. I bet more than anything Nathan's trying to make Kid remember by acting so violent toward him..." James was pacing now.

"And Maka's my fault, right?" Chrona asked in a small voice. "Because I'm not infected with the madness when she's around... Madness doesn't like that, he's influencing Nathan. Right?"

"Sounds about right..." James grumbled to himself, tugging at his hair before he stopped and looked at his pink-haired brother. "Chrona, no, I didn't mean that it's your fault-" Tears were pooling in the pinkette's eyes.

"_I don't know how to deal with this!_" Chrona wailed, curling up in a ball on the floor. Ragnarok sighed.

"Get over here, Chrona," he demanded. "I still _don't have any fucking pants,_" he shot a glare around the room, "so I'm sure as hell not coming over there." It was inappropriately comical the way Chrona inched across the floor, stopping by the bed and staying down. Rolling his eyes, the older boy hefted him up. Chrona promptly continued his sobs, clinging to his brother tightly, who only patted his head.

"Black Star, I don't think he's targeting them _because of _you but rather _in spite of _you. You're a convenient cover-up for his true motives." Ragnarok was carding his fingers idly through pink hair as he spoke.

"Which are?" Soul asked coldly. James sighed.

"To... Unite the family and eliminate the threat," James responded quietly. Spirit's fingers tightened on his chair.

"And what does that mean?" Spirit asked quietly, knuckles turning white. Ragnarok and James both avoided everyone's gazes.

"He wants to trigger Kid's memory and kill Maka, right?" Soul asked, voice a hoarse whisper. "He wants to do something awful to Kid and kill Maka." His voice had suddenly risen and he let out a pitifully hysteric laugh. "He's gonna kill her in front of him, isn't he? ISN'T HE?! That's what his mom did then, right? Killed someone in front of him? Someone important to him?" Soul let out another laugh and Black Star marched around to the red-eyed weapon's side of the bed.

"Soul, stop," he said, voice strained. Soul's face contorted into a sneer.

"Aren't you worried, Black Star?" He spat. "Your precious Kid is going to be traumatized by his psycho cousin." Soul let out another bark of a laugh. "You claim to have loved him for _sooo fucking long,_ but look how calm you are when he's being threatened." Spirit saw Black Star's shoulders tense, heard James suck in a breath and saw the guiltily triumphant look on Hiro's face.

"Calm?" Black Star asked calmly. "You think I'm fucking _calm?_" The slammed an elbow underneath Soul's chin, trapping his head against the wall. Soul winced, teeth bared; his friend towered over him. "How's this for calm you _fucking. Douchebag._" The bluenette let out a choked laugh before whispering. "How can you claim to be my best friend if you can't see I'm literally crumbling at the seams? I'm just trying to forget anything ever happened between him and I. It hurts too fucking much Soul! There's this constant, awful _ache _right here!" He thumped a hand over his heart, sounding on the verge of a break down. "I keep having to save him from all this stupid, crazy shit that makes up our lives and he _doesn't care about me! I want to **forget!**_ But do you know how hard that is to do when people won't stop constantly talking about it?! He made things clear! It's over! It's _done!_ Why can't you all just _shut the fuck up and let me forget?!_" Black Star's shoulders were heaving; he stepped away from Soul and turned his head to the floor.

"Star..."

"Shut up." The bluenette's voice was flat; he turned and walked toward the door, footsteps the only sound in the room. He was reaching for the handle of the door when Spirit saw it turn seemingly of its own volition. It swung outwards and time seemed to stop in the small room as Death the Kid stepped forward, head down and reading something on the phone he held.

"Hey, I got a text from James saying something was up, so-" He looked up from his phone and blinked; he stood inches away from Black Star. Kid took a step back, looking to the side.

"... Sorry," he intoned quietly. Black Star made a noise that could only be described as a wheeze. Spirit could see his fists trembling.

"You," the assassin began hoarsely, "have no idea how much I hate you." Edging past him, the bluenette breezed down the hall, leaving Kid to stand there with sightly trembling hands that were clutched around his phone as if it were his lifeline.

No one spoke, even long after Kid had turned around and exited in the opposite direction.

* * *

><p><em><span><strong>AN: Heh... Oops. Did I do that?**_


	31. The Photo Strip (Hate)

The next morning when Black Star walked through the doors of Shibusen with Tsubaki he could tell something was horribly wrong. People were passing by the two with snickers and giggles; a couple of guys tried to ram their shoulders against his to knock him off-balance, but he sidestepped them and caused them to fall.

"_Fag,_" one of them hissed out, a malicious grin on his face. Black Star's heart leaped to his throat; Tsubaki said nothing but reached out to squeeze his hand, once. He received the same treatment as he walked through the large lobby of Shibusen, but it wasn't until he stepped into the main hallway that he found out why. It was plastered everywhere; big posters on the wall, normal sized computer paper taped to lockers, even the floor was coated with papers depicting it.

It was the photo strip.

It was accompanied by what looked like a shopping list, titled "Kid and Black Star's Necessities for the Big Night," only adding insult to injury. Everyone was staring at him, hushed whispers and giggles echoing as he stood there, frozen. He just wanted to forget... Why wouldn't they just let him forget?

"What the fuck is this?" That was Kid; his voice was a mix of anger, fear, and hurt. Black Star swallowed and turned around to face him across the room where he stood with Patty. Kid caught his eye, gaze hardening int a glare. "Did you do this?" Kid demanded. "Because you hate me so much?" _Black Star bared his teeth._

_"Why would I want anyone to know about the biggest mistake I made in my life?" Kid looked taken aback before he let out a harsh laugh._

_"Same here," he hissed. "I really, really hate you. I don't know why I ever thought-"_

"I asked you a question, idiot!" Kid roared from across the room, startling Black Star out of his weird vision thing. He bared his teeth for real instead of standing there like an idiot. Kid opened his mouth to speak again but Black Star smirked, flipped Kid off and sauntered away, Tsubaki trailing after him. Kid let out an enraged sound and marched after him, reaching out to grip the bluenette's shoulder in anger. The assassin whirled, squeezing Kid's wrist in a vice-like grip that made the shinigami wince and people start murmuring again.

"Don't. Just don't. Why the hell would I do this?" He was speaking quietly, only Tsubaki and the unusually subdued Patty overhearing. "The only three people who had a copy of that photo strip were you, Maka and I. How do I know _you_ didn't do this?" Kis faltered at that, looking away.

"I... Lost mine. At school," he muttered. Black Star let out a hoarse laugh and shoved the black-haired meister away; Kid stumbled back, righting himself a second later.

"Then it's pretty safe to assume that this is your fault?"

"Probably, yes," Kid snapped back, fingers ghosting over his now red wrist.

"Why the hell did you even bring something like that to school?" The assassin snapped; the shinigami's face flushed bright red. It didn't happen all at once; the tan boy watched as it began at his neck and crept up his face, coloring his ears and up to his hairline.

"I..." Kid suddenly sneered; he stood up straighter, adjusted his cuffs and the color melted from his face. Though Kid was shorter than him, Black Star felt as if he were being looked down upon. "It doesn't really matter, does it? It was a mistake, the same way you and I doing... Whatever that was, was a mistake. The biggest mistake of my life, probably." The bluenette showed no emotion in the face of Kid's loathing.

"Same here," he said indifferently, quietly. "A mistake I don't plan on repeating." The room was slowly grower louder as people talked in more normal tones, some of them edging closer to hear the words being spoken. Kid sneered again and Black Star turned to walk away.

"Star!" Soul's voice bellowed from the entryway. "Hey, wait a minute-" Black Star scoffed, shoulders tense and staring straight ahead, not looking at the people behind him.

"Fuck off, Soul. You seriously think I can just forgive you for the things you said yesterday?" The steps coming after him halted.

"Star, you have to know I didn-"

"Didn't mean it? That makes it worse, I think. You were _trying _to hurt me, not just getting angry." The bluenette continued walking down the long hall, him and Tsubaki turning into a side hallway where he promptly pressed his hands to his eyes, shaking.

"They all know," he gasped out. "They all know they all know _theyallknow-_"

"Black Star," his weapon whispered, kneeling down and cradling his head to her. "It'll all be fine. It will." Running footsteps echoed down the main hall and Black Star composed himself quickly, stepping out with a calm expression.

* * *

><p>Kid was left standing in the wake of Black Star's anger once again, hands trembling noticeably to anyone caring to look. A pair of footsteps sounded softly behind him, muffled by the papers covered in his, Black Star's and Maka's smiling faces.<p>

"Kid?" James asked, fingertips barely touching his back. "You okay? This is a shitty thing to walk into." Kid shrugged, smoothing his hands down his own thighs.

"I'm fine; none of this matters. He hates me." His whisper was hollow. "And I-"

"Jesus, Kid, if he hated you then he wouldn't react so violently when Nathan got after you," Soul mumbled.

"You've got no tact," James informed him, disgust in his voice. Soul scoffed and mumbled something about irony but Kid was already running in the direction Black Star had gone, not completely sure what he hoped to accomplish. His feet slapped against the floor, noise bouncing off of the walls and then- there the bluenette was, in all of his green-eyed, tan-skinned, cold-smirked glory.

"Haven't you gotten the message yet? I-"

"Hate me?" Kid demanded, planting his feet and clenching his fists, staring the assassin down. The taller male cocked a brow from where he was leaning against a wall, gaze quickly flickering behind Kid's head; the pale boy could hear footsteps and judging by Black Star's non-reaction, they must have belonged to Spartoi. "If you hate me so much, then why do you keep protecting me? Why did you keep coming to my rescue even after- after whatever that thing was between us, huh? If you hate me, what could you have had to gain from that?!" Black Star pushed off from the wall, shoving his hands deep into his shorts pockets and letting out an incredulous laugh.

"You really are milking this for all it's worth, aren't you?" His voice was coldly amused; the footsteps had stopped some ten feet behind Kid, papers on the ground crackling as the people shifted around. "Are you a sadist or something? Can't you stop saying things that make it sound like you actually give a damn how I feel?!" Kid opened his mouth but was cut off with another laugh. "Seriously, you're pathetic. I wasn't 'saving you'. I'll take any chance to beat that asshole up, got it?" His voice was flat.

"Why, though?" Kid demanded. Black Star turned around and started walking around the corner, talking airily.

"The same reason I told him the first time we talked: _no one _looks at my little sister that way." With that Black Star was gone from sight and Kid hadn't given a damn anymore; he fell to the ground with his shoulders hunched and shaking, hands fisting into the paper covering the floor between his legs as burning water pooled in his eyes. The hallway was quiet as his tears splatted down on the papers, smearing the happy looks of him and the other meisters into meaningless blobs. When Patty came over and leaned her head on his he let out a sob; Soul followed not long after, crouching down and putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he muttered. "This is my fault-" Kid shook his head.

"No, i- it's mine-" He took a deep breath and let it out while lifting a hand up to swipe the heel of it across his cheek and dislodge the water there. "I shouldn't have- when he- I fucked up. He has every right to be angry. I just have to-" Kid stopped, realization washing over him. "I just have to make it up to him..." He murmured inaudibly, standing up on shaky legs; he composed himself and turned around to face the rest of Spartoi- Chrona and that boy who'd been in the infirmary yesterday were there as well, along with James and Hiro.

"I'd really appreciate it if you all kept this to yourselves," he spoke quietly. "Things are enough of a mess as they are. Once we've got Maka back and Liz is stable you can gossip to your heart's content, but at the moment we need to focus on them." _And not on me._ James opened his mouth and lifted a hand but Kid shook his head. "I'm fine, James- don't look at me that way, I really am. He's got every right to say what he did, okay? I was a fuckhead. We don't need to focus on that anymore though. Maka is priority and Liz comes right after."

"How can you _say_ that?!" Patty cried out. Kid reached out to cup her face gently._  
><em>

"Patty. I'm worried about Liz; don't think I'm not. But Nathan could be doing God-knows-what to Maka and we have Liz safe with us. That makes Maka priority."

"We don't even know it is Nathan," Patty said hoarsely. Kid stepped closer and hugged his now-shaking partner.

"Patty," he murmured to her, "our best chance to get Liz, get Maka and get revenge is to focus on getting Maka; where we find Maka, we find Nathan; the bastard who did this to Liz is _him_, Patty." She was quiet after that, clutching to the sleeve of his jacket.

"Anyway," he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, "what's the plan, anyway?" Soul let out a grunt, stepping into his field of vision.

"Well, James and- I. James and I. Decided that you and Patty are going to have to move in with, ah, Black Star and I-"

"I'm _not _moving in with Black Star," Kid hissed, eyes narrowed. Soul shook his head rapidly.

"No-! No, Patty would move in with Star and Tsubaki for the time being and you'd stay with me." Kid crossed his arms, eyes still glaring.

"Why, pray tell, do we have to do that?"

"Well," began the boy from the clinic in a rumbling, vaguely familiar tone, "Nathan's house is literally right next to yours and word on the street is that he's gone a little cuckoo in recent years." Chrona shot the boy a weary look.

"Eight years don't count as 'recent', Ragnarok," he mumbled chidingly; the bigger boy laughed and caught Chrona in a head-lock, giving him a noogie.

"Hey, l- let me go Ragnarok! Stop it, that hurts!"

"Ragnarok," Kid repeated flatly. "Right, we'll get back to that. What the hell do you mean Nathan lives next to me?" Ragnarok straightened, patting Chrona's hair down.

"Exactly what I said, are you deaf? So you can't stay at your house, it's too dangerous since you've been his target for a while." Kid's eyes were still narrowed.

"Why can't Patty and I stay together?" _It's funny how hard they're trying to protect me. I'm just going to walk into his clutches tomorrow._

"Not enough room."

"What about James' house? Since you two were the ones who decided this."

"Ah... Chrona and Ragnarok are staying at my house for the time being," James murmured apologetically. Kid scoffed.

"Whatever. Fine. We'll do it your way. C'mon, Patty, we've got to get to class."

* * *

><p>"You didn't stop Nathan because he's your nephew," Black Star accused quietly. "You let Kid continue to be harassed and hurt because Nathan remembers Kid's mother and Kid doesn't."<p>

"You don't know a thing." The response from Lord Death was as soft as the bluenette's words.

"Don't I? You want Kid to remember whatever awful thing Arachne did. You're just like Nathan- sorry, _Kenelm._ You're mad. You've got to be. How could someone treat their own son this way?" The assassin suddenly let out a dark chuckle. "I take it back. You're not like him at all. You're like Medusa. You don't care what happens to Kid as long as it benefits you, right?" The shinigami kept his back to the teen.

"That's not true."

"I used to look up to you, you know. I thought you were powerful and noble, but you're nothing other than a weak old man who happens to be called a God. You're nothing. Absolutely _nothing,_ except for the worst father in the world."

Lord Death listened to the boy's footsteps fade away toward the door, which opened and shut almost soundlessly, while closing his eyes behind his mask.

"You could never understand what I would do for my son."

* * *

><p><strong><em><span>AN: Hello my lovelies~ We hit 50 reviews after last chapter! /coNFETTI EVERYWHERE_**

**_I'm really excited over that, even though 50 reviews may not seem like a lot to some people. I love reading each and every one, I really do!_**

**_The absolutely BEAUTIFUL SOUL that is oyabun has brought to my attention a really awesome song that works pretty well for the fic! I want to assign a different song for each part of the story, and they're as follows:_**

**_Part One- Nicest Thing by Kate Nash_**

**_Part Two- Stay With Me by Sam Smith_**

**_Part Three- Almost Lover by A Fine Frenzy_**

**_Part Four (which starts with Chapter 34!)- Come On Kid by Josiah Lemming (suggested by oyabun wot [replace the female pronouns in the song- all the songs actually- with male pronouns um])_**

**_So! You should check those out. Also, I made a dumb playlist on YouTube which is basically just the songs that Star listens to on the days (that I don't write about wtf) when he locks himself in his room to brood. So, if you want to listen to THOSE, just type " 6&7 (Black Star)" into the search bar on YouTube. _**

**_Ick this is a long AN (sorry ugh). Until next chapter, happy reading!_**

**_AH WAIT WAIT WAIT I JUST GOT CONFIRMATION I CAN TELL EVERYONE THIS: Another beautiful soul, Cinder42, has offered to draw a cover for the story! I'm really excited and you all should be too; if you check out their deviantART you'll see why! They're fabulous at drawing and ugh I just love that they want to draw a cOVER I'M VIBRATING WITH EXCITEMENT._**

**_So, rounds of applause for oyabun and Cinder42! Beautiful souls (you all are really /breaks out into Jesse McCartney)_**

**_HAPPY READING!_**


	32. Recollections (Competition)

Lord Death sat quietly behind his desk in the study he hardly ever used anymore, staring at a picture of a happy, smiling family and reflecting on the accusations Black Star had just placed upon him. He'd compared himself to Medusa before; what he had done to Asura and what Medusa had done to Chrona and Ragnarok were equally despicable. Kid, though...

* * *

><p><em>"You didn't stop Nathan because he's your nephew," Black Star accused quietly. "You let Kid continue to be harassed and hurt because Nathan remembers Kid's mother and Kid doesn't."<em>

* * *

><p>That wasn't true. He didn't want Kid to remember Arachne or what she had done. <em>He<em> didn't want to remember it. That's why he was trying with all of his might to trust that Black Star could take care of this, the same way the boy had been the entire time. Death'd been trying for years to find a way to turn Kid off of the bluenette, but had had no such luck.

* * *

><p><em>"Father." Thirteen-year-old Kid stood in the doorway of Death's study, rubbing sleep out of his eyes and giving a small yawn.<em>

_"Hey, Kiddo~! How was your first day?"_

_"You do realize I was only there for... What, twenty minutes?" Kid snorted and walked over to lean against the wall directly across from his father's desk. "Liz, Patty and I ran into a couple of idiots and their partners; the idiots thought they could partner up for a battle, but their wavelengths weren't matched at all. It was pretty easy to beat them, but the blue-haired idiot... Tch. Going on and on and on about how he's going to surpass the Gods when he can't even appreciate the symmetry of the school!" Death's son scoffed, folding his arms and closing his eyes._

_"It sounds like it was a pretty interesting twenty minutes!" Death chirped, discreetly tucking a photo into a drawer._

_"Hm... I'm going to have to get my hair redone. It'll take hours," Kid mused quietly. "You know, Father... That blue-haired idiot. Star something, I don't know. He's arrogant, annoying, obnoxious..." The younger shinigami gave a lazy grin, one eye opening and his hands pressing into the wall behind him. "But he's determined and motivated, too. And... Cute, kinda. I just thought you should know." Kid pushed off from the wall and left the room, shutting the door behind him with a soft click._

* * *

><p>Death sighed at the memory. It had seemed inconsequential then; just another of Kid's frivolous whims. Then he had remembered what happened when they were seven, a year after Kid had lost his memory.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"Father, I don't <strong>want<strong> to go to work with you. I want to stay home and read."_

_"Now, Kiddo, don't be silly~! You've always loved playing with other children, remember?" Lord Death made a pained face behind his mask as Kid sniffed disdainfully and shook his head, book bag bouncing against his tiny back as they walked up the stairs to Shibusen._

_"No. I'm going to ignore them and read instead. And not those dumb picture books either!"_

_"Kiddo, that's not a good way to make friends-"_

_"I don't **need** friends! I'm a Death God!" The eldest shinigami allowed himself a grunt of frustration._

_"Please just try a little bit, Kiddo. There's another little girl your age who likes to read as well-"_

_"I don't like reading with other people."_

_"W- well, Black Star doesn't like to read- refuses to, really-"_

_"Black Star?" The curious little voice that interrupted him made Death stop and look down. His son's eyes were wide and shining._

_"Er... Yes?"_

_"That's such a cool name!" Kid began walking up the steps with renewed vigor and Death shook his head, sighing almost fondly. He'd take what he could get._

_Later that day when the shinigami had gone to retrieve Kid from the daycare of sorts for the younger children of faculty, he'd found... Well, something a little bit wonderful and a little bit frightening. _

_Marie, the caretaker for the day, was tied up in a chair. _

_Maka, Spirit's daughter, was spreadeagled on the floor and snoring incredibly loudly. _

_Black Star and Kid were laying on their stomachs next to each other on the carpeted floor. The sides of their bodies were pressed together so tightly it was hard to see where one ended and the other began. Their hands were clasped together as they grinned and took turns reading aloud from the picture book spread out in front of them._

* * *

><p>Death let out another sigh, smiling just barely behind his mask as he looked at the picture he still had of that scene. He always hid it when Kid came in. Throughout the years it had felt like he'd been in a competition against Black Star that the bluenette didn't even know about. He hadn't believed the child assassin would be good for Kid. Kid was superior to him in fighting skills but Black Star persisted anyway, leading Death to believe that his son would let it get to his head. Yes, Kid was a God... But Death wanted him to live and feel like a human, not just treat everyone and everything he met with disdain. Black Star would fuel his Godly ego, Death believed, so he tried to keep the two apart.<p>

The Book of Eibon incident had changed that.

* * *

><p><em>"THAT STUPID. FUCKING. BLUE-HAIRED <strong>IDIOT!<strong>" Kid had come home in a rage and locked himself in his room only to immediately start screaming and cursing. Lord Death had sent the sisters to stay the night with Marie despite their protests; he wasn't completely sure that Kid wouldn't level the manor with his anger. That had been seven hours ago and his yelling hadn't subsided; in fact, his screams were now accompanied by thumps, crashes and the unmistakable sound of his stereo being flung across his room._

_"Kiddo?" Death knocked on his son's door with the back of his fist but got no response. He sat on the couch in the living room for well over an hour before trying again. The hallway was silent as he walked down it and when he knocked on Kid's door it swung open on its own. Kid was curled in the middle of his own wreckage, legs bent to his chest and arms wrapped around them, shoulders hunched and face hidden in his knees. He was trembling and letting out small sniffles. Death picked his way across the room, settling down on the floor next to his son. Before Death could say anything, Kid's muffled voice floated out between them._

_"Father... Wh- When someone says that they... They want more power to help you achieve your dream..." He trailed off but Death thought he knew the gist of what the younger shinigami had meant._

_"I think it means," the father began carefully, Kid's reference to the assassin from earlier not really registering with him, "that that person must care for you very much." Kid had peeked his head up just barely but with an 'eep' and a bright red blush coating his face he'd hidden himself again. They sat quietly for another moment._

_"Father, I... I really..." Death could see his son's ears and neck were still flushed. "IreallylikeBlackStar!" Kid shoulders tensed and when Death said nothing he just plowed on. "I don't even know why, really, I mean he's so- so- unsymmetrical! It's disgusting! And he- he just goes around saying ridiculous things like that! That his dream is to have enough power to help me achieve mine! How am I supposed to know he doesn't mean that about everyone?! He's never **specific** enough! It's awful and ridicuous and- and- and I don't know if I wanna kill him or kiss him!" Kid's face went deeper red at that admission but he didn't hide it again. That was when Death had the first inkling he was starting to lose the competition between him and Black Star, which was not a good thing at this point in time. Death just gave an affectionate sigh and patted Kid on the head before standing up._

_"Liking someone can be complicated, Kiddo, but I'm sure you'll figure it out. In the meantime..." Death looked around. "**You** have a room to pick up." Kid groaned behind him and Death gave a chuckle, shutting Kid's door. Crisis averted._

* * *

><p>Death rolled his head on his neck. Another thing Black Star said had hit him hard.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"I used to look up to you, you know. I thought you were powerful and noble, but you're nothing other than a weak old man who happens to be called a God. You're nothing. Absolutely <em><strong>nothing<strong>,_ except for the worst father in the world."_

* * *

><p>Death had felt the same thing about himself three times: his failure with Asura, his inability to stop Arachne from what she'd done and when Kid had come to him after Asura's defeat wondering if Death hated him.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"Father..."<em>

_"Kiddo~! Great job, I knew you all could do it-" _

_"Father, please. I want to have a serious conversation with you." It was only a few months after the Book of Eibon incident. Death stood up straighter and nodded._

_"Alright, Kid. Let's sit down, then." Once again they were in his study, him sitting behind it and Kid actually occupying the seat in front of him._

_"I..." Kid began. "I was thinking... You created Asura with a fragment of your soul containing the parts of yourself you hated, right? And you say I had a mother, but I'm also born from your soul. If I'm made of the parts of yourself you hate... Does... Does that mean you hate me, as well?" Death's head was immediately shaking back and forth as he made his way over to his son._

_"Kid, no. Of course not. Please, don't ever think that. You're my son and I love you. Asura killed a lot of people and I still love him, don't I? You haven't done anything wrong and even if you had, I couldn't bring myself to hate you. The only reason you are made from the parts of my soul I detest is that I want you to be able to be human, Kid. I want you to be able to be angry and happy and hurt and sad and in love- I want you to experience all of it, all of those beautiful emotions. I want you to live, Kid, without relying on me or your Godly strength but on other people- people like Liz, like Patty, like Maka, Soul, Tsubaki, Black Star..." Kid closed his eyes on the last one, just the hint of a smile on his face. He opened them and stared up at the older shinigami, leaning his head on the hand resting on his shoulder._

_"You really don't hate me?"_

_"I really don't hate you."_

* * *

><p>When Kid was sixteen, he had come to Death again with a proclamation that had made Death frown behind his mask.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"Father, I thought you should know that I'm giving up on the frivolous whim that is me liking Black Star. It's a stupid crush with no ground." Death leaned back in his study chair, cocking his head.<em>

_"I could hardly say any of that is true, Kiddo. You've had a crush on him for- three years, is it now? That's hardly a frivolous whim; a frivolous whim is what I assumed it was when you first came to me and said he was cute. My opinion has changed. Three years, Kiddo."_

_"Precisely. Three years and I haven't made a move, he hasn't made a move. He probably doesn't feel like that toward me anyway. Not all boys are gay. Is there any sense in continuing to have a crush on him?" Kid winced and rubbed a hand against his chest. "It **hurts**. I don't like it." Death sighed._

_"Kiddo, it doesn't work that way. Feelings don't go away just because you want them to. Trust me Kiddo, I know better almost better than anyone on that. Feelings can be messy. They can hurt. But the benefits far outweigh the risks you take and the pain you may feel."_

_"... What if there aren't benefits from what you're feeling?" Kid whispered, head down. Death frowned, brows furrowed._

_"I'll tell you what, Kiddo. There's that big trip in a week, right? Where the weapons leave for that training seminar and the meisters stay here for one. Think about it while Liz and Patty are gone and then talk to them about all of this when they return. You'll feel a lot better after, I promise." With that Kid had left the office quietly, shoulders still drooped._

* * *

><p>Then he'd found them in the shower and something... Warm had been in his chest. He was once again slowly losing his competition with Black Star and he was happy about it; it meant that Black Star <em>was<em> the right one to help Kid gain humanity. He just couldn't let it stray too far from him; one wrong move and Kid might clam up. When they'd broken off whatever they'd had Death was torn- happiness that Kid was becoming more human and sorrow that he was going through such pain.

Then, there was Kenelm. Death couldn't bring himself to hate his nephew. He really couldn't; it wasn't his fault the way things had happened; he could be saved. He could. Death knew it. Asura couldn't, but Kenelm could and Kenelm _would._ Death owed it to his family: Kid, Ragnarok, Jerimoth, Chrona, Kenelm, Asura... He owed it to all of them to keep them safe and together as much as they possibly could be. It was his fault their mothers were dead. They were his children now. He was going to keep them safe, even if that meant they weren't safe from each other sometimes.

The shinigami couldn't bear to lose anyone else.

* * *

><p><em><span><strong>AN: YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW EXCITED I AM TO WRITE THE NEXT CHAPTER FEBDK;FWUEBBOJ**_


	33. The Arch (Spartoi Assembles)

_**A/N: I'm sorry to dampen your moods before you read this chapter but I want to make something clear after a review I received on one of my one-shots by an anonymous reviewer: **_

_**Kid has OCD (which stands for obsessive compulsive disorder, NOT "obsessive cleaning disorder" THANK YOU VERY MUCH), or rather, a specific part of it called OCPD- WHICH IS STILL GENERALIZED AS OCD. It's a canonical fact mentioned in the wiki. OCD is described as:**_

_-Thoughts, images, or impulses that **occur over and over again and feel out of the person's control**._

_-The person does not want to have these ideas._

_-He or she finds them disturbing and unwanted, and usually know that they don't make sense._

_-They come with **uncomfortable feelings, such as fear, disgust, doubt, or a feeling that things have to be done in a way that is "just right."**_

**_-They take a lot of time and get in the way of important activities the person values._**

**_In bold are the symptoms that apply to Kid. I realize that it's not all of them and that specifically he has OCPD, but this is still a form of OCD. It's not wrong or incorrect to generalize it that way. It IS wrong to comment on someone's story just to rudely criticize one small fact that you think is wrong. Which it ISN'T. I've done my research._**

**_Sorry to sound like a whiny bitch but this particular reviewer has tugged on my last nerve. I've tolerated them up until now but I'm very tired of this; however, this is the first and last time I acknowledge that they've irritated me. From now on I'll just ignore their reviews._**

**_Now that that's out of the way, my lovelies, here is the last chapter of part three! Happy reading~!_**

**_PS: macabun. On deviantART. She drew cute fem!Kid/BS stuff for me~! Go look at it! And she wrote cute fem!Kid/BS stuff too here on FF, where she is oyabun!_**

**_Words without AN: 5,730 (LONGEST CHAPTER UGH)_**

* * *

><p>Kid adjusted his collar in the mirror, face coldly appraisive. It may have been a fake date, but he wasn't going to give Nathan any excuse not to give Maka back. Liz's phone (he hadn't gotten a new one yet with all the chaos) pinged and he flipped it open.<p>

_2:00. Borborygm. Be there._

_N_

Kid rolled his eyes. He was missing school, then. Whatever. He'd go sit with Liz for awhile and ask Soul to look over Patty for the day.

"Kid? You ready?" Soul called from the other room. Kid poked his head out of Maka's room, keeping his face blank.

"I'm going to skip out on school and go sit with Liz. Can you keep an eye on Patty for me today?"

"Uh... Sure," Soul responded. "I'm off, then." Kid nodded, waving absentmindedly and returning to the mirror for more primping. He'd get Maka back. He'd make things up to Black Star.

* * *

><p>Soul stretched his arms above his head and yawned, walking slowly to where he saw Black Star, Tsubaki and Patty standing to wait for him. Once he was a few feet away Black Star raised an eyebrow and sneered.<p>

"Don't tell me you've lost that idiot already?" Black Star asked, feigning a yawn and generally acting like a total douche. Soul just shrugged; he felt guilty about what he had said in the infirmary so he wouldn't push that issue now.

"Nah. 'Said he wanted to sit with Liz today so he's not coming to school." Patty puffed out her cheeks at that but grudgingly walked forward with a nudge from Tsubaki, Black Star walking ahead and Soul trailing behind. Now that he thought about it... That bet between Black Star and Kid had been nothing but trouble for them. Maybe they should just forget it had ever happened. He sighed at that thought. There was no way Star would be able to forget; it didn't seem like Kid would, either. Why the hell had something like this seemed to be a good idea to them?!

* * *

><p>"So you see, my dear Maka," Nathan drawled lazily, smirking and smoothing down the front of his shirt. "<em>That<em> is why you have to die, and why Kid has to watch. Your death serves to be pretty useful, see? I can get you back for taming my brother and get Kid back to his family where he belongs. It's perfect." Maka was chained low on the wall of a stone basement in nothing but her undergarments. Discolorations covered her body; her hair was loose, head hanging down seemingly in defeat. She lifted it to give him a cold glare.

"One problem with your plan, dumbass," she spat out. "Kid would never go anywhere with you, not even just to save me-"

"But he'd try to save you if you meant something to Black Star, yes? If he were trying to, oh... Make something up to him?" Maka swallowed after a moment.

"I..."

"Precisely. I've thought this out, and I promise your death will be... Well, what Deva's was. Painful." The teen cocked his head at her and gave a twisted smile. "Kid and Black Star getting together and breaking up was probably the best thing that happened to me. It made everything so much easier... I thought about killing that blue-haired idiot instead, you know, but this will work just as well."

"You're not going to get away with this you know!" Nathan laughed at that.

"Oh, you beautiful idiot. _I already have._"

* * *

><p>"Kid? Hey, what're you doing here?" Kilik immediately hit his forehead with his hand. "Liz. Duh." The dark-skinned boy looked haggard; Kid knew he was running on almost no sleep.<p>

"Yeah, Liz. C'mon, let's go inside. I'll keep an eye on her. You need sleep." With a node the two walked inside, Kilik passing out on the cot in the room and Kid settling in the armchair next to his weapon. She mumbled inaudibly in her drug-induced slumber and Kid sat back. A little before one, Kilik woke up; Kid smiled faintly and lolled his head back.

"She's been fine," Kid murmured before Kilik could ask anything. "I would have woken you up if something had happened." Kilik relaxed back into the cot, closing his eyes and throwing an arm over them.

"I just... I don't understand how I could have let this happen to her," he muttered. Kid shook his head.

"You don't know yet, I forgot. I've already said it wasn't negligence on your part and I have proof to back that up. Apparently, Nathan's house is right next to the manor." Kilik sat up, eyes wide.

"What, really? I thought he lived across town..." Kid shook his head again, holding back a sneer of distaste at having to talk about the idiot.

"No, James does. They don't live together. Actually, James has some... House guests at the moment. Interesting ones." Kilik raised an eyebrow at that so Kid spent the next 45 minutes explaining about the four brothers' and their childhood; that Nathan and James were also the sons of Medusa, that Ragnarok was a human being, about the personalities of the Black Blood.

"It's kinda crazy that we all just happen to be here, though," Kilik said offhandedly. "Like it's weird to imagine that all this crazy shit could have happened to other people in another place if you, Black Star and Maka hadn't gone to that pet shop." Kid pondered that before nodding. Kilik wasn't afraid to talk about the bluenette around him; that was why Kid believed he was so good for Liz. Kilik and Liz were like a power team; they pushed each other's buttons in just the right way and could manipulate almost anyone when they worked together. It was kind of frightening.

"You know... I'm surprised," Kilik muttered thoughtfully. "Nathan hasn't tried to taunt us about Maka or anything. What if he's already killed her? It's almost like he's... _waiting _for something." Kid retained his indifferent face, shrugging.

"More than likely, it's the second one," Kid replied. "If he just killed her, his game would be over and he wouldn't have a chance at even looking at me or Black Star. He's waiting for something, I think." Kid didn't feel the need to mention that Nathan was waiting for him. Looking up at the clock he sighed and stood, stretching.

"I've got some things to do," Kid managed to say vaguely without seeming suspicious. Kilik nodded in response, smiling easily.

"Yeah, okay. Make sure you've got Liz's phone on you though, okay? Someone'll have my head if I let you leave here by yourself without a cell." Kid gave a smile and cocked his head, pulling the phone from his pocket and holding it up.

"I've always got it on m-" The phone made a noise similar to that of losing a life in Super Mario before the screen flashed and went dark like a screen going dark. "Um-" He flipped it open and pressed a button to no avail. "Er... It's dead," Kid said sheepishly. "Sorry..." Kilik only laughed, grabbing his own phone and tossing it to Kid, who caught it and tossed Liz's back.

"Just take mine for now. I can charge Liz's. Oh, before you go; I'm going to the manor later to do some laundry since Liz normally does that. Anything you want washed?" Kid cocked his head before nodding.

"Yeah, there are a few outfits in my laundry hamper if it isn't too much trouble." He held up Kilik's phone. "Thanks for this. I'll see you later." He hurriedly exited Stein's lab and made his way down the sidewalk toward the city's center.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Patty."<p>

"What." Black Star leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling, face screwed up in thought.

"... I feel like something really bad is going to happen today." Patty sat at attention next to him.

"What? What do you mean? Why? To Liz?" Black Star could tell her eyes were narrowed and he sighed, using a hand to shake out his hair.

"... Because this week has been a shitstorm and today just... Nothing?" Patty scoffed.

"You're worrying for no reason, Black Star..." He leaned down and buried his face in his arms.

"Maybe..." He muttered. "But all this calm just feels wrong, especially since the plan to get Maka back is tomorrow. " Patty patted his shoulder.

"It's not like Nathan knows about that," she chided. "C'mon, stop being so worried. Things are going back to normal. Once all this crazy shit is over we can deal with you and Kid." Black Star immediately shook his head to that.

"I just wanna forget that it ever happened," he admitted softly. "But everyone's making it so hard..." He didn't see Patty's frown as she patted the back of his head.

"You, Tsubaki and I should talk about that at lunch," Patty murmured, lifting her eyes to ceiling. She'd probably get chewed out by Kid later but she was really sick of pretending she didn't know.

* * *

><p>Kid opened the door to Borborygm and looked around. He was five minutes early (through no fault of his) and it seemed like Nathan had been waiting for him even longer than that. Soft pop music played through the speakers and all the tables shone. He approached the blonde coolly, sitting down in the booth across from him. Nathan shot him a bright smile.<p>

"Kid! Why don't you order something?" Kid shrugged, folding his hands in his lap.

"I'm not hungry. I had a late lunch." Those two facts had nothing to do with each other; he was never hungry. Nathan pouted, sending a sharp wave of disgust through him.

"Jeez, don't you know that when you go on a date you aren't supposed to eat first?" Nathan mumbled, pouting still. Kid assumed it was meant to be cute but it really just pissed him off.

"What are we going to be doing today?" Kid asked flatly.

"Kiiiid," Nathan whined. "We're on a date! You don't have to be so cold..."

"I asked you a question." Nathan let out an exaggerated sigh.

"I want to sit and talk~" Nathan practically sang.

"Then talk, Nathan," Kid nearly spat out. Nathan clicked his tongue in response, leaning back and looking around. The place was deserted besides them and the guy at the counter. Kid found that unnerving and knew it wasn't a coincidence. Nathan closed his eyes and crossed his arms behind his head and grinned.

"Mm... You know what I always found funny? The origin of the name 'Asura'." Kid sat ramrod straight, keeping his face blank. "In Indian mythology, an asura is an evil being, while in Zoroastrianism- that's a monotheistic religion from Persia that existed before Islamic religion, you know." Nathan looked proud- was he seriously trying to _impress_ Kid? "Anyway, in Zoroastrianism asuras are considered to be well-meaning and kind. Kind of ironic, right? Because everyone thinks he's so bad but he thought he was being helpful. It's like his name suits him perfectly..." Natha trailed off and opened one eye, smirk still set on his face as he looked down at his lap where his hands were now.

"Of course, like everything else, asuras have a counterpart. If it's not obvious, these counterparts are considered 'good' in Indian mythology but considered 'evil' in Zoroastrianism." Nathan lifted his head enough to meet Kid's careful gaze as he spoke, grin looking more sinister now. "They're called devas."

_Deva..._

Kid slouched a little, putting a hand to his head and furrowing his brows above closed eyes. _What the hell was that?_

"So what was your childhood like?" Nathan pressed, steering the conversation in an entirely different direction. It disoriented Kid, who was still reeling from that word bouncing loudly throughout his head. "Mine was pretty lively- I had a pretty big family- well, for normal standards, anyway. We all know about that wretched blue-haired idiot's family. They must've all been _inbred_ with how big that clan was, hm?" Kid blinked repeatedly, mind barely processing anything. "Anyway, I was never lonely because of all my brothers and my cousins. Did you know we didn't actually know Chrona was a boy until he was three and Ragnarok lifted up his dress to hang him on a door? We all teased him a lot since he was the baby of the family. Mother was pretty fucked up; she'd always wanted a girl but instead she got four boys, two of which were too weak to 'do anything useful'. Usually we'd stay out of her way and play outside with our cousins- Aunt Arachne's kids. She was pretty fucked up too, but her kids didn't know."

_"Boys, go play outside with your cousins. Mommy has a lot of work to do." _

Kid let a small breath whoosh out. What the hell was Nathan doing to him?!

"It's whatever, though, you know? They're dead now. The world's a better place and all that shit. I've got somewhere else I wanna bring you." He looked down at Kid (who had a hand clenched in his hair and the other clutching white-knuckled at the table) and grinned. "Come on, Kid."

_"Come on, Kid! Let's go play! Kenelm and Jerimoth are waiting for_ us..."

* * *

><p>Kilik whistled absently as he gathered clothes from his friends' rooms to put in the wash. He was starting to realize that it was good that Stein had demanded he do this; he wanted to stay by Liz, God how he wanted to, but he was getting sick trying to keep her healthy. He could trust Stein to take care of her for a little while. Only a little while, though; who knew how long until he tried to dissect her? He gave a small chuckle as he started going through the clothes and chucking them in the washer, checking all of the pockets for stray pens and the like. He wouldn't have expected anything like that but Liz had said once that Kid was constantly leaving shit in his po- Kilik laughed again, pulling out a crumpled piece of paper. Speak of the devil. Moving to throw it away he frowned at the small glimpse he caught; <em>"tle Faggot,". <em>Feeling a little guilty for snooping he threw the pants in the wash and unfurled it, letting out an unmanly squeak as the words registered in his brain.

_Daddy's Little Faggot,_

_You want the virgin back? Then we're still going on that date. See you Friday..._

_I mean, unless you want her to returned to you deflowered and in pieces._

_N_

Kilik growled under his breath and snatched up Liz's phone to text Kid and demand what the hell this note was when it hit Kilik that _today was Friday-_

Frantically now he flipped open Liz's phone and would have called Kid immediately if not for the fact he had to click out of a message from Soul and saw one from an unknown number on the list.

_2:00. Borborygm. Be there._

_N_

Kid had left Stein's at 1:45. It was now 3:30

"_FUCK!"_ Kilik bellowed, abandoning the clothes and racing to the door. He shoved his shoes on and pocketed Liz's phone, letting the door slam behind him. "Kid, you are such a fucking _idiot."_

* * *

><p>"Patty, what are you even trying to say?" Soul asked moodily, chin in his hand and elbow on the lunch table. Spartoi, minus the obvious four and plus the new four, were seated at a lunch table at far later a time than lunch was usually served. Black Star, Tsubaki, Soul and Patty were all talking together, voices low but not in a way as to draw attention.<p>

"I'm _saying,"_ Patty snapped around a mouthful of corn dog, "that it's not bad that Kid and Black Star were together. It's the way they _went _about it." Tsubaki looked at her meister apologetically before speaking.

"I have to agree with Patty. You two were really happy together, Star." Black Star snorted at that, laying his head on his arms.

"Do we really have to talk about any of this?" He complained.

"_Yes!_" Black Star groaned at the unanimous answer, hiding his face.

"I don't want to talk about it, or think about it or remember it or anything," he said quietly. "What's done is done. I made a stupid mistake and _I get it._ I know it. It wasn't-" He let out a frustrated noise and tried again. "Everyone knows that feelings aren't exactly-" _how Kid is wired _"Kid's forte. I shouldn't have expected anything more than I got so can we please for the love of God just _drop it?_" Patty narrowed her eyes.

"That was a beautiful little speech, but I have to dis-"

"_Black Star!"_ Said bluenette started, standing up to search through the crowded room for the person everyone was now staring at.

"Kilik?" Kim sounded confused. "I thought you were-"

"With Liz, yes and I _sweartofuckingGod_ I'll explain that to you all-" he jerked his head toward his usual group of friends, "-later but right now we need to fucking move."

"I _told _you something bad was gonna happen," the assassin hissed to Patty before speaking louder toward Kilik as Spartoi all started to get up and stretch. If Kilik said shit was going down, it must be going _down_. "Kilik, what happened man? Is it Li-?"

"No," Kilik cut him off. "It's Kid. He's done something really fucking _stupid_, literally something _you _would do so let's just go before he gets himself and Maka killed!" Black Star swore quietly and Spartoi moved as a unit (whispers were starting up from other students in the cafeteria) to Kilik who led them out and explained tightly what he knew.

"Alright, new plan. Chrona, Ragnarok, Soul- you're the extraction team," Black Star ordered. They were still moving quickly toward where Kid and Nathan were supposed to be.

"Hiro and I have to go, too," James said firmly. "I honestly hadn't thought of this before- we're probably dealing with a witch." Black Star's eye twitched.

"Right," he said, forcing calmness. "How exactly could you help with that?"

"... If I'm right and she is helping Nathan, her name is Opal. Technically, she's his fiancee but it's one of those arranged marriage things so-" James cut off, sounding apologetic. "We all knew her as kids but she's changed. A lot... She really, really gets a kick out of torture." Black Star got the implication and clenched his fists.

"Soul, I actually need you and Patty to be working together because you're both meisterless at the moment," Black Star said authoritatively. "James, Hiro, you'll replace him on the extraction team because, to be frank, I don't know how well James would do against his own brother." Black Star heard Soul's annoyed grunt but no one argued; Kid was in danger. That made him and, if she chose to speak up, Patty in charge. "Kim, Jackie... I'm hesitating to do this because it splits our manpower nearly in half, but you two need to go as well. If that witch is there... Kim, you'll have a better idea of her magic, right? Once you hear her chant and see her at work." Kim nodded and he frowned. "Alright, that's what we're doing then.

"Soul," Patty said lowly from her place next to the bluenette as the group made their way down Shibusen's stairs. "I think it's best if you play meister in this situation. It's true that you're a Death Scythe but I can be used as a long range fighting weapon which we really don't have any of. The rest of them will be close up but he won't be expecting attacks from far away." The assassin nodded as they turned a corner onto the street where Borborygm was located.

"That's what I was thinking. Extraction team, go now. If this asshole somehow gets away from us I don't want him getting back to Maka." The six sprinted off and skidded around a corner out of sight. Black Star turned his narrowed eyes to the unusually empty ice cream parlor. "Stay out here. Patty and I are going in." He kicked the glass doors open dramatically, him and Patty walking shoulder to shoulder. Hank looked up and smiled.

"Hey, kids, the usu-?" Black Star slammed his hands down on the counter in front of the slightly overweight middle-aged man.

"Sorry, Hank, no time for niceties. Who was on duty at 2?"

"Ah... That'd be Tyler. He's taking his break now."

"Typical douche name," Patty muttered darkly, arms crossed. Black Star narrowed his eyes further.

"I know everyone that works here, Hank and there's no one named Tyler. When did you hire him?" Hank tapped his fingers on the counter, thinking for all of two seconds.

"About a week ago, I'd say. Is he trouble? I'll kick him to the curb if he is, you know that." Black Star nodded curtly.

"I know. I need you to bring him in here. He knows where a friend of mine went." Hank blinked and not a minute later was reappearing from the back holding the ear of a twenty-something male who was kicking and screaming. The guy had a nose ring and a bar through his ear; he was dressed in uniform and his hair (which had ridiculous neon streaks in it) fell into his eyes. Hank hauled him to the counter to face the two teens; Patty wrapped a hand around Black Star's wrist.

"Where did the blonde and the black-haired guy go earlier?" Black Star asked threateningly, in a low voice. Tyler sneered.

"I don't know what you're talking about, you blue-haired idiot," he snapped, yelping directly after as Hank tugged hard on his ear.

"Patty." Before the assassin had finished her name she had transformed in his hand and he swung the pistol so that it was less than an inch from Tyler's forehead.

"Let's try this again," he said coldly, unnecessarily cocking the gun. "Where the fuck did Nathan take Kid?" Tyler whimpered, going cross-eyed trying to stare down the barrel of the gun. Black Star could tell he thought it held real bullets, but Hank knew that wasn't the case. Many a time he had allowed Shibusen to conduct interrogation here, which usually involved some sort of weapon.

"I- I- He payed me not to say anything!"

"Are you willing to pay with your life?" Patty's voice floated eerily from the gun.

"I-! _They went toward the Arch when they left! _That's all I know, I swear!" The guy hid his face with his arms while Patty changed back and Black Star's blood ran cold. Patty sneered at the guy.

"Pathetic," she growled, leading Black Star out. "Thanks, Hank." She saluted him before her and Black Star pulled open the doors.

"The Arch," he said gruffly. The Arch was infamous; a few years back a serial killer had taken their victims there because it was the only known place in Death City where no one could hear your screams. Kid, Liz and Patty had been sent to deal with him but by a stroke of bad luck had been captured; Black Star and Tsubaki had been sent to retrieve them because Soul and Maka were off on a mission directly from Lord Death. Black Star swallowed painfully at the memories of that night as they started to make their way down the street. That was when the various shopkeepers stepped out of their business almost at the same time, all wearing wide grins that were the tell-tale signs of madness.

"Puppet's Blood," Kilik hissed. That was what they had taken to calling the concoction invading Liz.

"Ox, Harvar, can you handle this?" Patty demanded in low tones. "They've got everyday items but they're going to be fast." The two boys nodded their assent and Harvar transformed. As the rest of them discreetly disappeared down an alley they heard Ox laugh.

"Let's kick some ass."

* * *

><p>Kid rubbed his arms uncomfortably as he and Nathan walked up the stairs to a place he knew well- the Arch. The steps were sun bleached and faded red-brown stains adorned them. He wondered how they could still be here after two years; those were <em>his<em> bloodstains from when Black Star and Tsubaki had been carrying Liz, Patty and himself away from there. He hadn't known until Tsubaki had informed him later: Black Star had committed murder and had been ordered to by Lord Death. He'd killed the serial killer, who's soul hadn't been blue but it wasn't red either. Tsubaki said that it was a sickly in-between color. She said Black Star had cried the entire way back to Shibusen. Kid had hated his father a little bit for that.

As he and Nathan reached the top of the stairs Kid looked around, feeling a little sick. The entire platform was stained red-brown from the victims, whose blood the killer had literally painted the platform with; Kid had been forced to watch more than once due to the fact that multiple victims were taken in one night. It was a gruesome sight and he was glad the sisters had been tied up and turned in the opposite direction. Kid swallowed thickly as his eyes fell upon the Arch itself. It wasn't an arch so much as a tunnel; ten feet long, three feet wide and seven feet tall. Originally it was meant to be an entrance to maintenance tunnels under the city but once the tunnel itself was built they realized that it wasn't a good place to put a manhole and abandoned the thing. It was closed off on both sides but one had a door; it was pitch black once that door was shut and completely soundproof. Kid had made the mistake of following the guy in and had been hit over the head with a pipe or something like it, causing him to black out. He was lucky he'd been captured and not killed.

"I've always though this place was really creepy." Kid started and looked up, caught like a dear in headlights; Nathan was smiling, genuinely _smiling_, with is face tilted toward the sun as he leaned back against the four-foot parapet that kept people from falling off of the jutting ledge of stained stone they stood on. "But it's got a really nice view of the city." Nathan turned around; Kid could have left if he wanted to, but they both knew he wouldn't. He had to get Maka. Gingerly he stepped forward, keeping a good three feet of space between them as he leaned against the small stone wall as well, letting the toes of his shoes nestle snugly against the small decorative pillars meant to hold up the top covering of stone. Kid had to admit the blonde was right as they stood there quietly overlooking the city, gusts of wind flapping their clothes and hair about. Nathan let out a small sigh.

"I'm not as bad a guy as you know me to be," he murmured quietly, looking down. Kid held his tongue. "I don't want to do almost any of the things I've done lately, but I can't help it. It's not... Me, if you can believe that." Kid narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to speak. "Wait! I know you're not going to believe any of this, but I need to get it off my chest; it feels like I'll claw my heart out if I don't. I haven't been... Lucid, for lack of a better word, in a really, really long time. It's like taking a gulp of air when you've been underwater too long." Kid gave him a strange look. What the hell was Nathan talking about?

* * *

><p>"Black Star!" The bluenette swore and wheeled around at Patty's warning.<p>

"More of them?" Soul asked incredulously. The assassin clenched his teeth, surveying the twenty-something ordinary people under the influence of Puppet's Blood in front of them. Patty let out a grunt of dissatisfaction.

"We can't leave anyone behind again. We're going to have to outmaneuver them," Black Star said tightly. "They're just regular people. Somehow, Nathan knew we'd find out that he's with Kid." Soul shook his head.

"No- these are precautions. You can tell. if he were expecting us he would have used hired muscle or something like that. This was just meant to slow us down and break us up if we _did _get wind of him having Kid."

"Then we can't let it," Tsubaki said firmly, receiving a nod from Kilik. "SET #7!" Black Star didn't try to hide his grin. Spartoi Evasion Tactic #7. He'd enjoy this.

* * *

><p>"You know about the Black Blood and how different personalities manifest according to the person." Kid blinked and nodded. Nathan sounded desperate and rushed. "Mine- Madness, that's his name. He's- He's awful, Kid. He's <em>me, <em>but not and he wants to make you remember all these awful things that you shouldn't have to-!" Without thought Kid reached out and gripped the boy's shoulders, shaking him lightly the same way he did to Liz when she started over-thinking things._  
><em>

"C- Calm down," he said uncertainly. Nathan sighed and put his face in his hands while Kid looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Sorry," the blonde said hoarsely. "I don't know how to explain this to you without saying the bad stuff." Kid took a step back and shoved his hands in his pockets, neither saying anything.

"I've always wanted to protect my family." Kid stayed silent, still wholly overwhelmed but trying to keep up. "Even when I was little, that's what I wanted to do, but I was always afraid that I wasn't strong enough to do it and sometimes I was afraid I'd end up hurting them; I always blamed myself because Jerimoth was smaller and got sick all the time. Mother said that was my fault, that I had been greedy and sucked up his nutrition while we were in the womb as well as my own. She said that that was a _good _thing-" Nathan cut off with a shaky laugh. "Sorry. Jerimoth is James, I forgot you don't know that-" Nathan stopped and froze up, letting out a cough. When he pulled his hand away it was sticky with Black Blood and the blonde let out a whimper.

"Kid- There's not a lot of time. Your friends are coming and he's going to come back out-"

"I don't understand one _word _of what you're saying, Natha-"

"No, Kenelm, my name is Kenelm. Kid, please just _listen. _They can't beat him this time because he's half-expecting them but if there's ever a chance- _go for the eyes."_

"What?" Kid was bewildered. "I don't u-"

"Kid, please, just promise me that if you're ever fighting him- _me. _Fighting _me_ again, go for the eyes. _Please. _ An arm, a leg- that's nothing, I have Black Blood, but Black Blood _can't repair the eyes._ They're too delicate." Nathan was giving him a look of pure desperation; frightened, Kid nodded.

* * *

><p>"We're in the clear!" Black Star bellowed, launching himself as quickly as possible toward the blood-stained stairs leading up to the Arch. He hated those stairs. Determinedly and as quietly as possible they made their way up the stairs, hearing indistinct words from very distinct voices- Kid and Nathan.<p>

* * *

><p>"O- Okay, seriously, what's goi-" Kid cut off when Nathan coughed again, the thick black liquid oozing around his fingers and splatting to the ground.<p>

"Kid-!" Nathan half-shouted, stumbling forward. He gripped the back of Kid's head and swooped down, placing a firm and helplessly wet kiss on his forehead. "... I'm sorry I couldn't protect you," he whispered. Next Kid knew there were pounding footsteps and a wide grin spreading across his forehead.

Then, there was only pain.

* * *

><p>Just one more step and then he'd be able to see them... Black Star crested the top of the stairs only to see a spike of Black Blood thrust its way through Kid's torso and out his upper back.<p>

"KID!" The sound ripped itself out of his throat without his permission, leaving a raw and scratchy feeling in its wake. Sound cut out for the bluenette other than the pounding in his ears. He vaguely noticed his friends swarming from behind him before he was focused on Kid and nothing else.

_Tunnel vision. It's called tunnel vision,_ he remembered absently. Kid's eyes were wide, his hands now pressed to his wound. Slowly he collapsed to his knees and then sideways on the ground, more blood spilling over the red-brown surface. Black Star fell to his own knees, skinning them on the rough stone and slumping in on himself; his eyes never left the broken body a mere fifteen feet from him.

"_Kid..._" He whispered again as the world around him fell to pieces.

_**END PART THREE**_


	34. Repression (Regression)

"He's been sitting there for three days... Soul, do you know if he's even eaten anything?"

"The nurses say that they bring in food for him but he won't touch it, that he just sits there and watches Kid like a hawk. If this keeps up the hospital wants to get permission from Lord Death to hook him up on the same stuff Kid is, to keep him hydrated and stuff. He lashes out whenever they try to move him."

"Soul... I'm scared."

"I know, Maka. I am too."

"... Are you holding my hand?"

"That's a really dumb question with a really obvious answer."

* * *

><p>"I'm... Floating..." Kid looked around the black space he was surrounded by and scoffed. "Enough of those shitty anime cliches, Kid. Pull your shit together and figure out where you are." He willed himself to be able to stand and was surprised when it worked, landing on his feet and looking around. "Right... This doesn't look familiar at all. I can't sense anyone else around, either." Squinting, he sighed. "Great. Light. If I go toward that and die, someone's really gonna pay..."<p>

Eventually he arrived at a revolving glass door; he noted that there was a small circular shape pressed into one of the panes of the door, where someone might be able to fit a CD or DVD. Through the glass he could see a rectangular, dark gray room with vertically floating panels on one side; it faded off into the distance, causing Kid to infer the room must have gone on for quite some time. It didn't _look _like somewhere you went to die... Grumbling nonsense, he walked through the door and left it softly turning as he walked slowly up to the first panel; it was a black square with soft corners and a green frame with a light gray, sideways triangle that looked like a 'play' button on it. Hesitantly he reached out to run his fingers across its surface and a gentle 'ping' sounded, echoing in the air.

"Kenelm Gorgon and Death the Kid go on a date." With a start he realized that he'd heard _his _voice floating through the air, cool as you please. "Status: Forefront. Memory added Recently. Remind Unnecessary." Kid blinked a few times, walking a couple of steps so he could touch the next panel.

"Death the Kid and Kilik Rung talk while Elizabeth Thompson is under." Kid noted it was his own emotionless voice again. "Status: Forefront. Memory added Recently. Remind Unnecessary." Kid continued walking when nothing else happened; after what he assumed had been several hundred panels he stopped and furrowed his brows. This panel had a yellow frame. He touched it and his voice rang out again from somewhere above.

"Death the Kid becomes an intoxicated nuisance." Kid started- he didn't remember that. "Status: Forgotten. Memory added at Age 14. Remind Available. Please press the Memory Panel again if you would like to Remember." Kid reached out and quickly jabbed the panel before he could think about it; he heard a whirring sound and then the panel extended, displaying a disc. "Please take the Memory Disc and insert it into the nearest Viewing Center. Replace the Memory Disc when done." Viewing Center- what was that? He recalled the revolving door and the strange imprint, then sighed. Just his luck... The door must have been a few minutes' walk. It couldn't be helped, though; he turned around to start walking, only to find a free standing 'Viewing Center' in front of him. Deciding not to question it he looked for the pane with the imprint and gently pressed the disk in. Nothing happened. He frowned and spun the doors, causing a large image to flicker to life above it. Kid stepped back, looking on in nervous anticipation.

* * *

><p>"Tsubaki..."<p>

"Jackie! You startled me... I don't think I've ever seen you without Kim. What's up?"

"Hmm. Just checking in on them, like you. I'm sorry if you feel like I'm intruding... I'm really worried about them is all. Before we all only knew each other as Spartoi but after this... I don't think I'm alone when I say I consider us all friends."

"O- Oh... I see. I hadn't thought of it that way but you're right; we're all friends now."

"... How long has it been now? Two weeks?"

"Two-and-a-half..."

"You're awful at subtlety you know, so I'll just tell you. The reason Kim isn't here is because she doesn't want to be around me right now. She met someone that she wants to be with, so she isn't comfortable around me and my feelings right now."

"That's awful... I'm sorry, Jackie."

"I wish I could say the same. Kim doing that... It made me realize that I'm not really _in love_ with her. I like her a lot, yeah, but I want something like... Like that."

"'That'?"

"Like Kid and Black Star. Even after everything that happened between them, Black Star is still sitting by Kid's side and refusing to leave no matter the consequences. I want someone who'd do that for me, someone I would do that for. I want to be in love- not lust or like or anything else, just love."

"Y- Yeah?"

"Mm..."

"... Me too, Jackie."

* * *

><p>Grumbling, Kid took the disc and returned it to it's original place, the extended panel whirring closed and the yellow frame fading to green.<p>

"Death the Kid becomes an intoxicated nuisance. Status: Forefront. Memory added at Age 14; Remembered Recently. Remind Unnecessary. Thank you for Remembering. Please move on." Nearly pouting, Kid continued walking. How embarrassing... He almost wished he hadn't chosen to remember that. No matter, it was too late now, he'd keep going. He passed thousands of panels, some green and some yellow, but he didn't try to remember the yellow ones even though he touched them to hear his voice explaining what he'd forgotten.

"Death the Kid and Black Star meet for the first time." Kid stopped and turned to look at the yellow framed panel, swallowing hard. "Status: Forgotten. Memory added at Age Seven. Remind Available. Please press the Memory Panel again if you would like to Remember." Kid immediately went to slap his hand on the panel but he stopped and slowly lowered it to his side, now clenched into a fist. He wouldn't look. There wasn't a point... If he changed his mind he could go back to it later. He turned jerkily and continued walking. More of these panels were yellow than green because he'd been younger; ten years younger, to be exact. He stopped again, squinting. Was that panel... Red framed? He quickened his pace; there hadn't been any of those before. He stopped in front of the new panel; as far as he could see, all of the panels after it were red as well. He reached out a shaking hand and laid his fingertips against the middle of the panel.

"Error. Status: Repressed. Memory added at Age Six. You may not Remember this Repressed Memory until you have Remembered the Repressed Memories before it. Please continue on the find the first Repressed Memory." Kid pulled back, shaking slightly. Repressed..? Why were his memories repressed? Turning and starting to practically run, passing red panel after red panel, he hardly dared to breathe. Kid finally slowed down; the end was in sight. The very first panel- or last, depending on how you looked at it- would be what Kid assumed was his earliest memory. Trembling violently now he raised his arm. Did he want to remember..? Face set, he nodded. He must be in this weird room full of memories for a reason; maybe this was it. He pressed his entire hand against it and heard the soft 'ping' as usual.

"Death the Kid and Lord Death have a conversation about Deva the Kid, Asura the Kid, and Death the Kid's parentage. Status: Repressed. Memory added at Age Four. Remind Required. Stand in front of the Memory Panel and prepare to Remember." Deva... Nathan had mentioned those things and he'd remembered that name. Kid steeled himself and let out a strangled noise as manacles closed around his ankles and a memory flickered to life above the panel. He whimpered as the image swooped down and shoved its way into his brain via his forehead. Kid let out a scream as he felt his mind practically being ripped open, closing his eyes tightly as the memory pulled him in.

* * *

><p><em>"Father..." Kid felt ridiculously small; he estimated himself to be about three and a half feet tall.<em>

_"Hey there, little buddy!" Kid walked forward and clambered up into the chair next to his father's desk. From here he had a nice view across the dirt road to his Aunt and cousins' house. Wait, cousins? What cousins? What Aunt? Kid wanted to furrow his brows but he wasn't in control of this body- it was part of the memory. He also knew somehow that the house he was in was his house, that there was a bigger one in the city but Father and Mother preferred this small one that was just behind the hulking beast of symmetry that was Death City and was close to Aunt Medusa's-_

_... Aunt... Medusa?_

_- and it was important for Aunt Medusa to be close to the city and Shibusen because of the research she was doing._

_"Father, you said that me, Deva and Asura-"_

_"It would be Deva, Asura and I, Kid," Death corrected softly but firmly. Kid pouted._

_"Well, you said the three of us are made from fragments of your soul... But we have a mother. I don't understand how that works. Aren't we... Monsters?" Kids father laughed gently, now turning his full attention to his middle son. _

_"While it's true that you and Deva, even Asura, all have a fragment of my soul within you, that's not how you and Deva were made. Asura was made purely from my soul while you and Deva were both born naturally and days later had a piece of my soul placed in you. None of you, **none** of you, are monsters." Kid made a face._

_"If you can create other shinigamis without needing another person to help, why are you married to mother?" Kid loved her dearly, but he didn't have a special love for her like Deva did. Kid had Father. Death chuckled again._

_"I'm married to your mother because I love her, kiddo." _Kid knew instinctively his father wasn't calling him Kiddo like he did in the present day; he was calling him kiddo like every other dad in the world did for their own child. "Even if you can do something by yourself, it makes you feel more special if you do that thing with someone you love." There was a small pause.__

__"Are you referring to sexual intercourse, Father?" Death practically melted, slithering from his desk chair to the floor while Deva giggled from the doorway and Kid gave a small grin.__

* * *

><p>"Death the Kid and Lord Death have a conversation about Deva the Kid, Asura the Kid, and Death the Kid's parentage. Status: Forefront. Memory added at Age Four; Remembered Recently. Remind Unnecessary. Any Repressed Memories following this one will be displayed similarly to Forgotten Memories. Please continue to the next Repressed Memory." Shaking, Kid leaned against the Memory Panel and closed his eyes. He didn't understand. Medusa, his aunt? That meant... Nathan, James, Chrona, Ragnarok; they were his cousins? A- And Deva? That little boy? If Kid wasn't mistaken, he was Kid's little brother... He felt the urge to vomit. Why was all of this hidden in his head? What was so bad about it?<p>

He had to find out.

Taking a deep breath and standing up straight, he walked to the next panel and tapped it.

"Death the Kid, Deva the Kid and the four Gorgon brothers get lost. Status: Repressed. Memory added at Age Four. Remind Required. In lieu of a Viewing Center, the Memory Panel will now display an image. Please prepare to Remember."

* * *

><p>"It's been nearly two months."<p>

"That it has, Harvar... That it has."

"... It doesn't make sense for Black Star to keep sitting there, Ox. There's a good chance Kid isn't going to wake up."

"I don't know that you could understand it if I tried to explain it to you, Harvar."

"We need Black Star up and running; what if Nathan attacks again?"

"We haven't heard anything from him since he escaped that day. I think he's gone for good."

"I don't. He wants Kid to remember whatever James won't tell us for a reason, not just because."

"I suppose."

"..."

"..."

"... Ox."

"Harvar?"

"Why does Black Star insist on sitting by Kid even though he gets nothing from it? Kid doesn't even know he's there."

"Oh, jeez. You've got a lot to learn about love, Harvar."

* * *

><p>Kid blinked.<p>

"Death the Kid, Deva the Kid and the four Gorgon brothers get lost. Status: Forefront. Memory added at Age Four; Remembered Recently. Remind Unnecessary. Thank you for Remembering. Please continue on to the next Repressed Memory." Right. Kenelm was his best friend. What? He pressed his fingertips to his head; it hurt the same way it did when he tried to push his limits at shinigami magic. Still rubbing it lightly he continued on, pressing each red framed panel. After a couple hundred, he came across one that made him stop for a moment.

"Death the Kid overhears a conversation he shouldn't. Status: Repressed. Memory added at Age Five. Remind Required. In lieu of a Viewing Center, the Memory Panel will now display an image. Please prepare to Remember." Kid watched unerringly as an image flared to life above the panel, unable to remove his eyes even if he wanted to.

* * *

><p><em>Kid crouched in an alcove behind a leafy plant, not daring to breathe. He hadn't meant to eavesdrop on the conversation, but he'd panicked when he heard his aunt and mother talking in the room next door and dove behind the plant. If he walked by now, they'd know he'd been listening.<em>

_"-eavor of yours has become ridiculous, Medusa. Ten years and still, nothing. This- This Black Blood, as you call it, is now nothing more than you clinging to your pride. Let it go, sister. The longer you try the more of a fool you'll seem." Kid heard his aunt's throaty laugh and the soft scraping of something being slid across a table.  
><em>

_"Eat your words, Arachne dear. I have the finished product in this very box." Kid heard his mother suck in a soft breath. "This will help you achieve your wildest dreams, sister. All you have to do is inject yourself with the blood."_

_"What's the catch?" Arachne's tone was clipped. Medusa chuckled again._

_"No catch, sister. It will help you eradicate anything in the way of your goal."_

_"Medusa." Kid's heart skipped a beat at that tone. She used it with him and Deva and his cousins when they did something really bad. "Do not mistake me. I will not risk my children or husband for your petty project, as I know you somehow will achieve if i agree to this. My family is my life."_

_"You know... It's funny," Kid heard his aunt say languidly, the sound of the latches on the box eerily loud. "White Star said those exact same things to me before I injected him with the first batch. Dreadful how that turned out, with that entire clan becoming crazed monsters. One of them was only ten, if I remember. I supposed it's good that Shibusen got rid of them... Except for that baby, that is. After White Star had been affected by the blood, the rest of the clan allowed me to inject them as well. My theory is that the baby is growing up without the effects of the blood. It lies dormant because he wasn't old enough then to remember being injected. He'll grow up never being aware of it... I wonder, sister. This is the last batch and it's much, much more discreet. How will it react in you?" Kid heard a chair clatter to the floor and his mother take a step back._

_"You... You've become a monster, Medusa." Kid's aunt cackled and a dull thump was heard, followed by a sharp intake of breath from Kid's mother._

_"That's what witches are, Arachne! We're monsters!" There was a grunt from Medusa, a yelp from Arachne and something plastic clattered to the floor. Kid stayed absolutely still as Medusa fled but scrambled up and shot into the room once she was out of earshot. His mother was sitting on the floor with her head in her hands; she was trembling. An empty syringe laid on the floor next to her, a thin line of blood trailing down her arm._

_"M- Mother?" Arachne let out a small gasp, head shooting up to show eye filled with tears._

_"Oh, baby," she whispered, holding out an arm. "Oh, Kiddo, come here." Kid obediently walked over and dropped to his backside, clutching her dress and curling into her. "Baby... Did you hear all that?" After a moment, Kid nodded hesitantly. "Oh, my sweet baby boy... Kiddo, I love you. I love you and I love Deva and I love your father. I love you all so, so much." Kid clung tighter to her, not protesting when she hauled him into her lap. "No matter what, baby, my Kiddo I love you so much. You have to promise me that you'll remember that. I love you and Deva and your father and even Asura more than you could ever imagine."_

_"I love you too, mommy," Kid whispered, not embarrassed despite the fact he hadn't called her that since he was three. She squeezed him tightly before letting go._

_"Kiddo, stand up." He obeyed, standing up properly. "Father and Deva are going to be home soon. You have to promise you won't tell them about this, alright? Because mommy loves you all very much and I'm going to find a way to fix things." Kid nodded uncertainly. "Now," Arachne said, a small smile on her face as she wiped at her tears. "What are our rules, Kiddo?"_

_"To be presentable, I must be even on both sides!" Kid chirped. "That way, my two halves mirror each other, like a shinigami mirror!" Arachne nodded, smiling fondly at him but with sad eyes. _

_"That's right, Kiddo. Go get changed and I'll clean up. This has to stay our secret. Remember; I'm going to fix things." Kid nodded energetically, hurrying toward the door but turning around to flash her one last grin. _

_"I love you, mommy!"_

* * *

><p>"Hey, Liz..."<p>

"Yeah, Patty?"

"It... It's..."

"Come here... Why are you crying, idiot?"

"I- It's been six m- months! What if K- Kid doesn't ever w- wake up?!"

"Oh, no, shhh. He's going to wake up, Patty. He has to. There's no way he can be satisfied leaving things this way."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...

"... But what if he doesn't?"

"... We've been fine on our own before, Patty..."

"Not this time, Liz. Definitely not this time."

* * *

><p>Kid swallowed hard as he stared at the panel before him. He'd seen many more memories after the one about his mother, but that one stuck in his head especially. The two of them hadn't interacted a lot after that day, something that had confused and upset his younger self. Now he stood at the final red panel, presumably the reason all of them before it had been repressed. Shakily, he reached a hand out before pulling it back. Swallowing again and steeling himself, he struck forward and tapped a finger against the panel.<p>

"Arachne Gorgon and Shaula Gorgon commit an unspeakable act. Status: Repressed. Memory added at Age Six. Remind Required. In lieu of a Viewing Center, the Memory Panel will now display an image. Please prepare to Remember." A wave of foreboding crashed over Kid before he was pulled into the memory.

* * *

><p><em>"Kid! Where's Daddyyyyyy?" Kid sighed in irritation as Deva wailed, moving from the couch to sit on the floor next to his younger brother.<br>_

_"Deva, Father had to go to the city today, remember? And Aunt Medusa and Jerimoth and Kenelm and Ragnarok and Chrona went with him." Deva sniffled, shuffling closer to Kid and resting against him. He was clutching a cartoonish skull mask to his chest.  
><em>

_"Kid... If Daddy doesn't come home soon, somethin' real bad is gonna happen," Deva whispered, squeezing his eyes shut tightly. Kid turned to him and opened his mouth but was cut off.  
><em>

_"Hey, brats! Arachne wants you outside, **now**." Kid wrinkled his nose. Aunt Shaula had come over for the day; she was scary and mean._

_"Mommy never comes out of her room, though," Deva protested quietly. Shaula stormed into the room with a fierce scowl, grabbing each of them by a wrist and hauling them up; both brothers cried out in pain as she dragged them outside and tossed them carelessly to the ground. Deva was careful not to let his mask break as they both looked up at their mother. She stood cold and imposing, eyeing them in what looked like distaste._

_"Deva," she said flatly. "Come to Mother." The five-year-old stood up reluctantly and shuffled toward, little knuckles white on the skull mask. Arachne snatched it, tossing it only a few feet away. She looked up, face blank. _

_"Shaula." The teen cackled, grabbing Kid. She pinned his arms behind his back with one hand and grabbed his chin with the other, forcing him to look in the direction of his __mother and brother. The position made it difficult to talk so he shut his mouth and looked on angrily. His mother was standing behind Deva, who was staring at Kid with big, scared, sorrowful eyes. She cupped the youngest brother's cheek with a hand, locking eyes with Kid._

_"Kid, there's a problem with your little brother," Arachne said smoothly, one hand moving to Deva's upper arm. Kid glared, not liking the vibe he was getting from her. What was wrong with his mommy? "You see, Kid..." Why wasn't she calling him Kiddo? Mommy almost always called him Kiddo. "Your brother is weak. Weak the way that Chrona and Jerimoth are. Both of them need to rely on outside sources, you see? Like Ragnarok and Kenelm; they protect their brothers, who are too frail for our world. _

_"Deva, however, can't be protected by you, Kid. You're weak, too... You just try so, so hard to hide it. You'll never care for someone else correctly because of that, especially not Deva." Kid was growing confused and hurt as his mother droned on, her other hand moving to Deva's shoulder. What exactly was going on..? "Because of that," Arachne continued, turning her gaze to the top of Deva's head as a wide, demonic smile graced her face, "I have to end Deva's life now so that he doesn't suffer later because of your negligence." Kid and Deva locked eyes, terror mirrored in both gold sets. Before either could utter a protest there was sickening sound- a crunching, squelching, splatting sound- and one of Deva's arms was tossed across the yard. Kid's screams of horror and Deva's of pain continued as Shaula cackled, forcing Kid to watch while Arachne ripped off another of his baby brother's arms and threw it away from her carelessly._

_"This is all your fault, Kid." Arachne's voice rose effortlessly against the cacophony of madness- Kid vomiting, Deva screaming, Arachne tearing off a leg and Shaula cackling, always cackling. "This is because of you. You tried to mask your true self and now your brother is paying for it. You are a **monster**, Death the Kid." With a final sickening crunch, Deva's neck was snapped. Kid let out another scream-sob-wail before the world faded quickly to black around him._

* * *

><p>"<em>De-v-a<em>," Kid choked out, sitting up straight and gasping. His throat felt like sandpaper and his voice came out rough. Something cool and smooth bumped against his lips before he could even register his surroundings and he started before recognizing it as a glass and shakily taking it with both hands, gripping it tightly.

"Drink, please." The voice was hoarse but Kid would have known it anywhere. He nodded, not looking at his blue-haired companion as he took a sip of water. Chapped lips stuck to the glass after and he licked them before setting the glass down and carefully turning toward Black Star. The bluenette looked haggard, like he hadn't been sleeping well. He seemed to be hooked up to some of the same kinds of wires that Kid was, though the shinigami couldn't fathom why.

"... What's going on?" Kid asked quietly, voice still rough from apparent disuse. He was in a hospital, he could tell by the smell. Black Star shifted, a couple of fingers tapping on his thigh erratically. After some time, he spoke in his own hoarse voice.

"You've been in a coma for six months. Stabbed through the lower stomach to upper back with a spike of Black Blood by Nathan. Fucker got away but we've been on the lookout. Your body seems to have fought off the Black Blood as it would any other infection. There were no complications with the healing. No one really knows why you've been out for so long." The assassin spoke in staccato bursts, leg jiggling restlessly now. Kid swallowed as he watched him. If what Arachne had said was true... If he couldn't care for someone correctly... Well, that explained a hell of a lot. He couldn't keep hurting Black Star this way, especially now that he knew for certain there wasn't going to be a happy outcome.

"Black Star."

"Mm." Kid twisted his blanket in his fingers, looking down.

"It's... Best if we just pretend nothing happened between us, I think." _I'm a monster, Black Star; I don't want to hurt you anymore. This is all my fault._

"I've been thinking the same thing." _I should have saved you, Kid; I'm sorry for hurting you. This is all my fault._

Black Star stood and Kid watched as he took the needles out of his skin with ease before stretching, shirt riding up to reveal a strip of tanned stomach. He turned and pressed Kid's call button then walked toward the closed door of the room.

"Black Star! I..." Kid frowned at the bluenette's back. "I'm sorry for the things I said. On the morning after my birthday and all those times after," he added. The taller teen turned around with a smile.

"Don't worry about it, Kiddo. I'm just glad you're awake, okay? All of that's in the past and once I walk out this door we'll be pretending it never happened. Right?" Kid studied the tan boy then nodded.

"Yeah. You're right."

* * *

><p>Liz (along with Patty, Kilik, James and Hiro) looked up as the doors to the waiting room opened and blinked at the sight before her.<p>

"Kid's awake," Black Star informed the few hoarsely, rubbing at his droopy eyes tiredly. "He seems to be perfectly fine- said something weird when he woke up though, 'deva'? I dunno." Liz saw James' jaw clench and she shifted uneasily. What'd that mean? "Anyway. I'm headed home, I need sleep. See you all in a day or two." He gave a lazy salute and walked toward the door leading into the hallway.

"I'm sorry, _what?_" Liz demanded, dumbfounded as she stood up. "After all this, you're just- just _leaving_? Like it's _nothing?_" Black Star stopped and turned to face her, leaning against a wall.

"Yes," he responded calmly. "Kid and I just agreed to forget the things that happened between us; it'll be easier on both of us, y'know? And before you even think to scold me or something, he brought it up." Liz blinked rapidly, mouth opening and closing; the bluenette smiled at her, looking resigned.

"Honestly, Liz... I'm just glad he's awake. It's my fault he's hurt in the first place, so I don't have any _right_ to ask anything else of him." Before Liz could respond and ask what the hell exactly he thought he was talking about, the bluenette had disappeared down the hall. Liz shook her head and immediately pushed through the waiting room doors to march her way to Kid's room, the others trailing behind. When she stepped in he was laying flat on his back, staring at the ceiling blankly.

"Liz." He cocked his head to the side a little, mouth now set in a grim frown. "I'm a fucking monster."

* * *

><p>Black Star closed his eyes as he leaned against the elevator wall. His emotions had been in overdrive and subsequently shut down when he was talking to Kid and Liz and now they were slowly creeping back up. The elevator dinged and he stepped out, only to raise his head and see Lord Death across the lobby of the hospital. The shinigami walked toward him and Black Star waited, trying to squish his anger.<p>

"Black Star," Death said seriously. "You and I have had a strained relationship for awhile- and because you were acting in a way as to protect my Kiddo, I accepted that. Now, however, I think it's time we had a talk. I want you to understand why I did what I did." Black Star sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face.

"Yeah. Sure. Whatever. Not like I wanted to sleep or anything." Black Star threw his hands in the air in exasperation, squelching his emotions down again as he followed Lord Death out into the sunlit parking lot.

* * *

><p><span><strong><em>AN: I said this was gonna be out in a week and it's been a month. Sorry! Hope it's worth the wait. (There are probably a lot of grammar/spelling issues but I'll fix them tomorrow- for now I just wanna get this out.)_**


	35. Recon for Recon (Long Wait)

_**A/N: Uh... Hey! So, I haven't updated this story in well over a year, and I'm very sorry about that! I hit a block and then some stuff happened in my life and everything kind of got away from me, haha! I still plan on finishing this story, even though I don't like this writing a my as my current writing, but I don't think I'll be writing the followup stories I planned, unfortunately... That means that at the end, I'll explain every plot hole there's still left, and I hope you can all forgive me for it! **_

_**So, I have a couple of things about myself I want to say before I show you the next chapter! In the past year, I've come out as trans; I'm a demiboy, and I use zhey/zhem or he/him pronouns. If you know my dead name, please don't call me it! You can refer to me as Sollux or Stan, or just kwiluvu is fine as well. I'm a very different person than I was a year ago, and I'm not really comfortable writing sex things anymore, but I never had more sex scenes planned for the rest of this story anyway! My original goal for this story was 44 chapters, and I'm still really hoping we can make it there! I'm sorry for the writing style from here on out being different from the red of the story, but please bear with it! **_

_**I'm sorry for being gone so long! I hope you can forgive me. This will be a short chapter; I've been trying to write it for a long time, and I'm really dissatisfied with how short it is, but I'd like to get the ball rolling again. As always, happy reading! **_

* * *

><p>"Look. It's clear no one is satisfied with how things have been left." It had been nearly a month since Kid had been released from the hospital, and things had gone back to how they'd been before. <em>Before,<em> before. Before anything between Black Star and Kid had been started, before Kenelm and Jerimoth, all of it. Liz sat with the others at a table in a small cafe- Soul, Maka, Tsubaki, Patty. Despite everything that had happened, with Spartoi, with the twins, with Chrona, all of it, in the end their group would still be their group. That would never change... And that meant that they had to be the ones to figure out how to fix things with Kid and Black Star.

"What is there to do, though?" Maka asked softly, absently swirling a finger around in her now lukewarm tea. Soul sat beside her, leaning his chair back on two legs, and Tsubaki sat across from him. Liz was next to Tsubaki and Patty was on her other side; the younger sister was coloring absently, little giraffes scattered across the paper place mat.

"I don't know," Liz admitted, glancing out the window and running a hand through her hair, shaking it out. She was meeting Kilik later, but he was the furthest thing from her mind right now. "But no one's happy. Not us. Not them. Not anyone around them. We haven't heard a peep from Kenelm-"

"That doesn't mean we won't."

"Soul," Maka said immediately, voice soft and chastising as she hit his chest lightly.

"What? It's true," he muttered, looking away. She just sighed, looking back to the others, and he let out a 'tch'.

"Lord Death wants to hold an event. To celebrate Kid's return to health." Everyone looked to Tsubaki before glancing away, all of their eyes wandering aimlessly, aside from Soul's.

"And?"

"We could probably do something then. Lord Death isn't happy with things as they are now, either-"

"It doesn't matter how we feel," Liz said, rolling her head a bit to look at Tsubaki. "It's about how Kid and Black Star feel. And, frankly, I don't think any plan we come up with is going to work unless we wear at least one of them down a bit first." Everyone gave small murmurs and mumbles of assent. The atmosphere at their table was the gloomiest in the place, and it was no surprise. Black Star and Kid hardly even spoke anymore, just like before. Black Star had never explained what he and Lord Death had talked about, and Kid had refused on several occasions to tell Liz or Patty or anyone else just what, exactly, he'd meant when he said he was a monster. From the outside looking in, everything was normal, but they all knew that things were far from normal at this point.

"It's no use talking to Star about Kid." Maka took her finger from her tea, wiping it on a napkin. "He clams up and laughs it off. He pretends nothing ever happened." Tsubaki nodded in agreement.

"Kid's all but gone back to how he was when we first transferred here."

"All work and no play!" Patty interjected, puffing her cheeks out but still focusing on her drawing, and Liz nodded.

"He's anal about everything again. He's even gone back to folding the toilet paper ends." Maka winced. Yikes.

"What if we set up circumstances similar to what originally started their fling?" Liz and Tsubaki both shook their heads at Maka's suggestion.

"Things were different, then. They've changed too drastically at this point for that the work." Liz examined her cuticles absently as she spoke, and Maka sighed quietly, turning her head to look out the window.

"What do we do?" She asked quietly, and Soul reached out and took her hand as the clouds opened up and it started to rain.


End file.
